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Cerebral Plasticity and Functional Reorganization in Children with Congenital Brain Lesions

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Neonatology

Abstract

Mechanisms of cerebral plasticity are more powerful during development. This however does not necessarily lead to better outcomes in case of early brain injuries, as opposed to later ones, due to the complex interaction of brain plasticity, vulnerability, and maturation. A deep understanding of the mechanisms underlying the reorganization of brain functions after early damage will give us the opportunity to target the intervention in terms of timing, quality, and duration so to maximize the processes of adaptive plasticity and limit the maladaptive ones. New techniques of advanced brain mapping are providing a unique opportunity to explore this matter in humans, both in the acute and post-acute phase, during the early stages of development, and in the chronic phase, when the plastic reorganization has for a large part already occurred. We will review here the current knowledge on the main mechanisms of plastic reorganization in subjects with congenital lesions, with particular reference to the language, sensorimotor, and visual systems. The main differences with the effects of later injuries will be underlined.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IRCCS Stella Maris, Department of Developmental Neuroscience, Pisa, Italy

    Viviana Marchi, Andrea Guzzetta & Giovanni Cioni

  2. University of Pisa, Department of Clinical and Experimental Neuroscience, Pisa, Italy

    Viviana Marchi, Andrea Guzzetta & Giovanni Cioni

Authors
  1. Viviana Marchi
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  2. Andrea Guzzetta
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  3. Giovanni Cioni
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Viviana Marchi .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Siena, Italy

    Giuseppe Buonocore

  2. Medicina della Riproduzione, Università di Siena Dipto. Pediatria, Ostetricia e, Siena, Italy

    Rodolfo Bracci

  3. Liverpool Women's Hospital Neonatal Unit, Liverpool, United Kingdom

    Michael Weindling

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Marchi, V., Guzzetta, A., Cioni, G. (2017). Cerebral Plasticity and Functional Reorganization in Children with Congenital Brain Lesions. In: Buonocore, G., Bracci, R., Weindling, M. (eds) Neonatology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18159-2_166-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18159-2_166-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-18159-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-18159-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

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