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RR&D; Brain Rehabilitation Research Center (BRRC)

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An investigator explaining research results to a man as they stand in front of a poster displaying information about the research

About Us

The BRRC works to find treatments that will lead to recovery of function after neurologic disease or injury

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Image of Director of the Brain Rehabilitation Research Center welcoming visitor to lab

BRRC People

With a wide range of expertise, BRRC investigators work together to find treatments to restore functions impaired by neurologic injury or disease.

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Man undergoing transcranial electrical stimulation while looking at image of brain on computer monitor

Contact Us

We are located in the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System in Gainesville, Florida

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Motto:  "Reshaping neurorehabilitation through discovery and treatment innovation"

The BRRC is a Center of Excellence in Gainesville, Florida, funded since 1999 by the Rehabilitation Research and Development Service.  The mission of the BRRC is to develop and test treatments that harness neuroplasticity to substantially improve or restore motor, cognitive, and emotional functions impaired by neurologic disease or injury.

News

Note concerning links to non-VA websites: The VA does not endorse and is not responsible for information, products, or services at non-VA websites.

Stephen E. Nadeau, MD Stephen E. Nadeau, MD   <>   Dr. Nadeau will chair a symposium at the 44th Annual Meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society (INS) in Boston in February. As author of the book, The Neural Architecture of Grammar (MIT Press), in which he laid out his comprehensive, neurally-based theory of language function, Dr. Nadeau will bring that expertise to bear in chairing the symposium: Chaotic Order, Language Connectivity, and a Generalizing Treatment of Aphasia. Aphasia, an impairment in any form of language use, is caused by brain injury or illness and often severely affects the ability to communicate, which can be devastating.  Stroke alone causes aphasia in approximately 80,000 persons each year. (February 2016)

Bohsali portrait Kendall portrait Anastasia A. Bohsali, PhD (left), and
Diane L. Kendall, PhD, CCC-SLP (right)
<>  Dr. Bohsali is a current BRRC Career Development Awardee who will be presenting at Dr. Nadeau’s symposium (see above news item) as will Dr. Kendall, a BRRC Career Development Awardee from 2000 to 2008.  Dr. Kendall is now a researcher at the VAMC Puget Sound in Washington. (February 2016)

Russell M. Bauer, PhD, ABPPRussell M. Bauer, PhD, ABPP   <>   For his work at the University of Florida as Director of Clinical Training for the Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Dr. Bauer received an award for Outstanding Service from the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology. Among other achievements, the award recognizes innovation in building and measuring program quality and achieving good outcomes for graduates. The BRRC has its own training program, the  Career Development Program funded by VA's Office of Research and Development. (August 2015)

Dorian K. Rose, PhDDorian K. Rose, PhD   <>  The American Heart Association has awarded Dr. Rose a $154,000 grant to study a novel rehabilitation intervention: a backward walking training program. Dr. Rose and her co-investigators, which include another BRRC investigator, Dr. Carolynn Patten, will examine the potential of this program to increase both mobility and self-efficacy of stroke survivors and thus improve their quality of life and decrease their risk of recurrent stroke. Self-efficacy is defined as what people believe about their ability to influence events that affect their lives (social learning theory). As part of a collaboration, the research will be conducted at Brooks Rehabilitation, a BRRC affiliate, in Jacksonville, Florida. (August 2015)

William M. Perlstein, PhD William S. Perlstein, PhD  <>  Dr. Perlstein’s innovative combination of direct-attention and metacognitive training for Veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) will be tested in a new VA research study. The 2-year study will assess the impact of his novel approach to rehabilitation on (1) cognitively complex activities such as activities of daily living and life participation and (2) neurocognitive abilities related to attentional control. Also, a form of electroencephalography (high-density, scalp-recorded brain electrical activity) will be used to assess changes in brain function during the study to determine if there are any neurological markers or signs of changes in the brain (neuroplasticity) that can be used to measure the results of this cognitive rehabilitation approach on brain function. (July 2015)

Janis J. Daly, PhD, portraitJanis J. Daly, PT, PhD  <>  An article reporting groundbreaking work Dr. Daly directed was published by the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.  In conjunction with the article, the journal also published an editorial about the significance of the article and a 12-minute interview with Dr. Daly about the work.  The study showed that arm and hand functions severely impaired by stroke can be significantly improved by intensive treatment, even if treatment begins more than 6 months after the stroke, when no further spontaneous recovery would occur.   The complete article is available here, and it was also featured in a recent BRRC newsletter (accessible version here). (June 2015)

Carolynn Patten, PT, PhDCarolynn Patten, PT, PhD  <>  Dr. Patten received the prestigious University of Florida (UF) Research Foundation Professorship for 2015-2018 and has also been named winner of the Linda Crane Research Award from the Florida Physical Therapy Association.  The UF award is based on recent research accomplishments such as publications in scholarly journals, external funding, honors and awards, and development of intellectual property.  The Linda Crane Research Award consists of a grant to conduct a clinical outcome study in any area of physical therapy that relates to the American Physical Therapy Association Guide to Physical Therapy Practice.  (April 2015)

 

Below is an example of the kind of imaging used by BRRC investigators to study the effects of injury to the brain on function and the effects of treatment to restore function.

 

  

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