Ask Dr. Nick
On today’s episode, Dr. Nick talks about how the cerebellum is used to improve function during brain rehabilitation. The cerebellum is termed the ‘little brain’ because it looks like the cerebrum (or ‘big brain’), but it actually has more neurons than the rest of the brain combined. It coordinates actions, thoughts, and emotions in order to create more accurate responses to a variety of external stimuli. For this reason, the cerebellum can be activated with help of a variety of senses, and sometimes, combining senses is better. The cerebellum offers this reserve that can be used when other areas in the brain, or the cerebellum itself, becomes damaged. In this way, the cerebellum helps to compensate for damage in other brain regions in order to improve symptoms following a stroke, head injury, or inflammatory insult. Check out the video for more in depth information on the cerebellum!
Mitoma H, Buffo A, Gelfo F, et al. Consensus Paper. Cerebellar Reserve: From Cerebellar Physiology to Cerebellar Disorders. Cerebellum. 2020;19(1):131-153.
