Foundations and Characteristics of the Use of Motor Imagery and Brain–Computer Interfaces in Rehabilitation in Juvenile Cerebral Palsy

We present here an analysis of the literature on various aspects of the use of motor imagery and brain–computer interface (BCI) technologies in the rehabilitation of children with diagnoses of juvenile cerebral palsy (JCP). We describe compensatory mechanisms for restoration of motor functions in the presence of damage to areas of the motor network of the brain in early life. Approaches to objective monitoring of the ability of children to imagine movements are described and grounds are presented for the possibility of training children with JCP to motor imagery, particularly using BCI; possible factors hindering the use of BCI in children with JCP are discussed. Results from clinical trials of the efficacy of BCI in rehabilitation in JCP are presented. Despite the fact that the number of studies in this area is quite limited, the results of the investigations covered here lead to the conclusion that training to motor imagery using BCI can potentially be used in the rehabilitation of children with JCP and may be quite effective. © 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.