Open AccessVestibular Stimulation in Neuropsychiatry
Author(s) -
Soza Ried
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
annals of behavioral neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2638-9231
DOI - 10.18314/abne.v3i1.1863
Subject(s) - galvanic vestibular stimulation , neuropsychiatry , neuroscience , vestibular system , psychology , prefrontal cortex , stimulation , brain stimulation , hippocampus , cognition , perception
Neuropsychiatric disorders involve brain areas of self-awareness, affect voluntary attention to stimuli, and show cognitive processes’ dysfunctions. Functional images demonstrated that the stimulation of the inner ear’s vestibular receptors enhances the activity of the insular cortex, prefrontal cortex, hypothalamus and hippocampus, improving self-perception, attention, reasoning, and memory. Vestibular stimulation techniques (e.g., caloric, galvanic, and rotary) modulates those neuronal centers at the right or the left hemisphere depending on the kind of the stimuli and the side of stimulation, being a potentially useful therapeutic tool for mental disorders. Neuropsychiatric conditions are currently the leading cause of global disability. The present article reviews vestibular stimulation techniques in neuropsychiatry and discusses future directions.