Motor Imagery for Reach-to-grasp Rehabilitation After Tetraplegia

Motor Imagery for Reach-to-grasp Rehabilitation After Tetraplegia

Single center, pilot study, to evaluate the influence of Motor Imagery (MI) on functional rehabilitation and cerebral plasticity through the qualitative and quantitative mental practice approach. For this, the investigators will use magnetoencephalography (MEG) but also physiological and behavioral indicators developed by the Laboratoire de la Performance Motrice, Mentale et du Matériel (P3M) of Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 and its partners.

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18-55 years old,
• quadriplegia elicited by spinal cord injury (SCI) at the C5, C5-C6, C6, or C6-C7 level,
• complete infra-lesional motor deficit according to the ASIA impairment scale with finger and forearm flexor muscles paralysis,
• post-traumatic period >6 months (since a motor recovery plateau is usually reached at 6-month post-SCI

Exclusion Criteria:

• non-stabilized hypertension or pathological autonomic nervous system dysfunction (e.g., orthostatic hypotension),
• cerebral damage and/or cognitive deficit,
• elbow or shoulder joint amplitude restriction, upper limb para-osteoarthropathy,
• participation to another study
• presence of metallic objects within the body incompatible with MEG or functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) recordings.