Brain activation for actual and imagined hand movement following bilateral hand transplantation.

ABSTRACT: Hand transplantation has been successful in restoring function in a select group of people, but the mechanisms by which the central nervous system integrates a new hand are unknown. We used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess brain activation related to actual and imagined hand movement, for a recipient (female, 60 years of age) of bilateral hand transplants. Investigation of a patient-specific network of sensorimotor cortical regions was conducted at a preoperative session, as well as at three assessments conducted over a 16-month, post-transplantation period. We detected significant activation for both actual and imagined hand movement, relative to a rest baseline, for both transplanted hands, at all three postoperative sessions. Activation was higher for

SUBMITTER: Madden DJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12679952 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature