Final answer:
Moving the contra-lesional limb in patients with neglect can help stimulate brain areas affected by lesions and capitalize on neural plasticity for rehabilitation. Treatments like Ramachandran's mirror box for phantom limb syndrome similarly use visual feedback to trick the brain into perceiving movement and aid in recovery.
Step-by-step explanation:
Moving the contra-lesional limb is utilized as a treatment for neglect, which is a condition often resulting from cerebral lesions, such as those caused by a stroke. When a patient shows neglect for one side of their body, they may ignore or not respond to stimuli on that affected side. Using the contra-lesional limb, which is the limb on the opposite side of the body from the brain lesion, can help activate and potentially rehabilitate the affected sensory and motor areas of the brain through neural plasticity.
This approach is similar in theory to treatments like the mirror box developed by Ramachandran for phantom limb syndrome, where the illusion created by the mirror can “trick” the brain into perceiving movement of the neglected side, helping to alleviate symptoms. Through repetitive movements and exercises, patients can improve their attention to the neglected side and reduce the severity of their condition. Such therapies harness the concept of neural plasticity, which is the brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life.
The efficacy of these exercises also depends on the strength and muscle tone of the contra-lesional limb, which can be assessed through different motor systems subtests, including assessing muscle strength against resistance and the pronator drift test that checks for a potential corticospinal tract lesion.