Neural Plasticity and Reorganization in the Brain of Paralympic Athletes

Abstract

Paralympic athletes demonstrate remarkable neural plasticity to overcome their physical and mental impairments and achieve high performance. This paper reviews studies that have elucidated the cortical reorganization in the brain structure and function of athletes with spinal cord injury and lower limb amputation, and discusses the neural mechanisms underlying their specific adaptation. Studies have shown that athletes with spinal cord injury exhibit an expansion of the upper limb dominant area in the primary motor cortex, and an increased functional connectivity between the primary motor cortex and the superior parietal lobule, providing a neural basis for their enhanced upper limb motor function. Athletes with lower limb amputation show increased brain activity in the ipsilateral primary motor cortex during stump contraction, and a correlation with the nucleus accumbens motor network. These findings suggest that both compensatory and use-dependent plastic changes contribute to the cortical reorganization of paralympic athletes, and that their interaction induces specific reorganization.