Rehabilitación de las Funciones Ejecutivas en Caso de Patología Cerebral

Abstract

The executive functions have been defined as those processes that allow humans to transform thoughts into action. The concept of executive functioning encompasses a wide variety of cognitive mechanisms that underlie human behavior, including initiation, sequencing, organizing, categorizing, planning, abstraction, verbal fluency and self-regulation. This article is a state-of-the-art review of rehabilitation programs and techniques commonly used to effectively treat deficits in executive functioning resulting from brain lesions affecting the frontal lobes. Self-instructions, cognitive stimulation, problem solving, behavior modification techniques, social skills training programs, electronic devices, and environmental modifications have all been found to be useful. In conjunction with these rehabilitation programs and techniques, the article will also emphasize the importance of pharmacological therapy and the need to work closely with the family of the person with executive functioning deficits.