Motor Imagery: How to Assess, Improve Its Performance, and Apply It for Psychosis Diagnostics

• Published in: Diagnostics
• Main Authors: Alla Chepurova, Alexander Hramov, Semen Kurkin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2022-04-01
• Subjects: motor imagery; movement imagination; motor imagery assessment; transcranial magnetic stimulation; motor evoked potential; visual imagery
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4418/12/4/949

With this review, we summarize the state-of-the-art of scientific studies in the field of motor imagery (MI) and motor execution (ME). We composed the brain map and description that correlate different brain areas with the type of movements it is responsible for. That gives a more complete and systematic picture of human brain functionality in the case of ME and MI. We systematized the most popular methods for assessing the quality of MI performance and discussed their advantages and disadvantages. We also reviewed the main directions for the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in MI research and considered the principal effects of TMS on MI performance. In addition, we discuss the main applications of MI, emphasizing its use in the diagnostics of various neurodegenerative disorders and psychoses. Finally, we discuss the research gap and possible improvements for further research in the field.