P300 BCI for Persons with Spinal Cord Injury: A BCI in Search of an Application?

Abstract

By now, in the year 2020, the P300 BCI looks back on a history of more than 30 years. A plethora of studies have been conducted with visual stimulation mostly for control of communication devices. The major target population were people with severe motor impairment including those in the locked-in state in which no communication is possible and different applications controlled by the P300 BCI have been suggested. For people after spinal cord injury, restoring motor functions such as grasping or walking is of utmost importance. In this chapter we review studies which used the P300 BCI as control of assistive devices and included people with spinal cord injury. We dwell on the pre-requisites for quality of life in spinal cord injury and how a P300 BCI may potentially support maintenance thereof. We outline how the P300 BCI might be used as a tool for training to prevent cognitive decline often seen as a consequence of spinal cord injury. We outline necessary steps for further research and end by concluding that the potential of P300 BCIs for people with spinal cord injury is limited, albeit its value for immediate communication in patients with ventilatory support during intensive care, for cognitive training and wheelchair control remains to be investigated.