Rehabilitative management of post-stroke visuospatial inattention

Purpose: Visuospatial inattention or sensory neglect is a common impairment following cerebrovascular accident and is thought to negatively impact on functional recovery and longterm outcome. This review examines various reha bilitative interventions available for the management of visuospatial inatt ention and the literature that supports their efficacy. Method: Medical literature review. Results: Therapies geared toward improved visual scanning and 'retraining' of patients to attend to the neglected field are the mainstay of current th erapy. While some studies support their efficacy, others have reported limi ted benefit. Newer approaches that may be efficacious include eye patching techniques, use of video feedback during therapy, training in visual imager y, and pharmacologic therapy with dopamine agonists. Protocols using vestib ular, somatosensory and optokinetic stimulation have each been shown to pro duce transient improvements in neglect. However, therapeutic applications f or these techniques have not been studied. Conclusions: A number of approaches toward the rehabilitation of post-strok e neglect are described in the literature. Further research is needed to be tter define which techniques may prove most beneficial.