BACKGROUND: Emerging and advanced technologies in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) represent promising methods to predict and diagnose neurodegenerative diseases, such as dementia. By using multimodal approaches, Machine Learning (ML) seems to provide a better understanding of the pathological mechanisms underlying the onset of dementia. The purpose of this review was to discuss the current ML application in the field of neuropsychology and electrophysiology, exploring its results in both prediction and diagnosis for different forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer\'s disease (AD), Vascular Dementia (VaD), Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), and Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD).
METHODS: Main ML-based papers focusing on neuropsychological assessments and electroencephalogram (EEG) studies were analyzed for each type of dementia.
RESULTS: An accuracy ranging between 70 % and 90 % or even more was observed in all neurophysiological and electrophysiological results trained by ML. Among all forms of dementia, the most significant findings were observed for AD. Relevant results were mostly related to diagnosis rather than prediction, because of the lack of longitudinal studies with appropriate follow-up duration. However, it remains unclear which ML algorithm performs better in diagnosing or predicting dementia.
CONCLUSIONS: Neuropsychological and electrophysiological measurements, together with ML analysis, may be considered as reliable instruments for early detection of dementia.

OBJECTIVE: Epilepsy patients could possibly benefit from the remuneration observed in the use of virtual reality (VR) and virtual environments (VEs), especially in cognitive difficulties associated with visuospatial navigation (memory, attention, and processing speed).
OBJECTIVE: Research questions under consideration in the present systematic review are associated to VEs\' efficiency as a cognitive rehabilitation practice in epilepsy and the particular VR methods indicated for epilepsy patients. To meet criteria, studies included participants suffering from any form of epilepsy and a methodological design with a structured rehabilitation program/model. Data were collected online, using academic databases.
RESULTS: Fourteen studies were included in the literature review and 6 in the statistical analysis. ROBINS-I protocol was implemented to assess the risk of bias. An inverse variance analysis (random effects) of pooled estimates of differences was implemented, in the form of continuous data. Despite the heterogeneity of the studies, all of them agree on the beneficial aspects of VR and VEs in cognitive rehabilitation in relation to visuospatial memory, attention, and information processing speed.
CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that patients suffering from epilepsy may benefit from the use of VR cognitive rehabilitation interventions, concerning visuospatial memory, attention, and information processing speed. However, further investigation is needed in order to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in cognitive rehabilitation via VEs and establish efficient and dynamic rehabilitation protocols.

Aphasia is one of the most common clinical features of functional impairment after a stroke. Approximately 21-40% of stroke patients sustain permanent aphasia, which progressively worsens one\'s quality of life and rehabilitation outcomes. Post-stroke aphasia treatment strategies include speech language therapies, cognitive neurorehabilitation, telerehabilitation, computer-based management, experimental pharmacotherapy, and physical medicine. This review focuses on current evidence of the effectiveness of impairment-based aphasia therapies and communication-based therapies (as well as the timing and optimal treatment intensities for these interventions). Moreover, we present specific interventions, such as constraint-induced aphasia therapy (CIAT) and melodic intonation therapy (MIT). Accumulated data suggest that using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is safe and can be used to modulate cortical excitability. Therefore, we review clinical studies that present TMS and tDCS as (possible) promising therapies in speech and language recovery, stimulating neuroplasticity. Several drugs have been used in aphasia pharmacotherapy, but evidence from clinical studies suggest that only nootropic agents, donepezil and memantine, may improve the prognosis of aphasia. This article is an overview on the current state of knowledge related to post-stroke aphasia pharmacology, rehabilitation, and future trends.

With the arrival of the cognitive paradigm during the latter half of the last century, the theoretical and scientific bases of neurorehabilitation have been linked to the knowledge developed in cognitive neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. Although the knowledge generated by these disciplines has made relevant contributions to neurological therapy, their theoretical premises may create limitations in therapeutic processes. The present manuscript has two main objectives: first, to explicitly set forth the theoretical bases of cognitive neurorehabilitation and critically analyze the repercussions that these premises have produced in clinical practice; and second, to propose the enactive paradigm to reinterpret perspectives on people with brain damage and their therapy (assessment and treatment). This analysis will show that (1) neurorehabilitation as a therapy underutilizes body-originated resources that aid in recovery from neurological sequelae (embrained therapy); (2) the therapeutic process is based exclusively on subpersonal explanation models (subpersonal therapy); and (3), neurorehabilitation does not take subjectivity of each person in their own recovery processes into account (anti-subjective therapy). Subsequently, and in order to attenuate or resolve the conception of embrained, subpersonal and anti-subjective therapy, I argue in support of incorporating the enactive paradigm in rehabilitation of neurological damage. It is proposed here under a new term, \"experiential neurorehabilitation.\" This proposal approaches neurological disease and its sequelae as alterations in dynamic interaction between the body structure and the environment in which the meaning of the experience is also altered. Therefore, when a person is not able to walk, remember the past, communicate a thought, or maintain efficient self-care, their impairments are not only a product of an alteration in a specific cerebral area or within information processing; rather, the sequelae of their condition stem from alterations in the whole living system and its dynamics with the environment. The objective of experiential neurorehabilitation is the recovery of the singular and concrete experience of the person, composed of physical and subjective life attributes.

Vascular dementia is the second most common cause of dementia, with clinical features that depend on neural substrates affected by the vascular lesions. Like most neurological disorders, it involves alterations that range from the molecular level to neuronal networks. Such alterations begin as compensatory mechanisms that reshape every subsystem involved in the brain\'s homeostasis. Although there have been recent huge advances in understanding the pathophysiology of cognitive dysfunction, a suitable therapeutic approach to vascular dementia remains elusive. Pharmacological interventions have failed to sustainably improve cognitive function, and it is a well-known fact that there is a need to change the current view for providing neuroprotection and enhancing neurorecovery after stroke. Studies regarding cognitive training are also faced with the difficulty of drawing up protocols that can embrace a holistic approach in cognitively impaired patients.
This review will present a brief synthesis of current results from basic research data and clinical studies regarding pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions in vascular dementia and will offer an integrated view from the perspective of systems biology.