Soha Saleh, Ph.D.
The Neurophysiology and Rehabilitation Innovations Lab
The NeuREI lab applies knowledge of neurophysiology to advance rehabilitation research. Its mission is to improve function and quality of life for individuals with motor and cognitive disabilities.
- Developing neuroimaging based prognosis models of recovery post stroke
- Investigating cognitive-motor interactions and neuromodulation methods to promote neuroplasticity
- Using multidisciplinary approach involving structural and functional imaging and electrophysiological techniques and behavioral assessment, combined with advanced signal processing and analysis.
Keywords: Neuroimaging, Neuromodulation, Signal Processing, Image Processing, Brain Connectivity, Electrophysiology, Neurorehabilitation
Michael Glassen, M.S.
Research Engineer
Email: mglassen@shp.rutgers.edu
Fares Yahya (Alshargie), Ph.D.
Research Associate II
Email: fares.yahya@rutgers.edu
Harshith Saligrama Ravindra
Graduate Assistant
Email: hs1110@scarletmail.rutgers.edu
Emily Peters, MPH
Research Coordinator
Email: petersen@shp.rutgers.edu
Grant Funding
Title: Cognitive Integrated Motor Training to Improve Gait and Balance and Reduce Falls in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment
Role: Co-Principal Investigator
Sponsor Agency: National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research
Brief Overview of Aims: The project aims to improve Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairments gait & balance rehabilitation by shifting the focus from multifactorial motor-only training towards more comprehensive cognitive integrated motor training to better treat ambulation deficits.
Total Dollar Amount:
Funding Period: 09/01/2024- 08/31/2027
Title: Personalized Neuromodulation to Treat Motor and Cognitive Symptoms in Aging Population
Role: MPI
Sponsor Agency: Rutgers University School of Health Professions – Dean’s Intramural Grant
Brief Overview of Aims: The study aims to improve cognition and mobility in the aging population and individuals with cognitive and mobility deficits due to neurological disorders through cognitive-motor training and personalized brain activation stimulation. Personalized brain stimulation techniques will be used in combination with cognitive-motor training in a virtual reality environment. The study will recruit ten participants to test the effects of training on movement, cognition, and brain connectivity.
Total Dollar Amount: $35,000
Funding Period: 9/1/2023- 9/1/2025
Title: Enhancing Rehabilitation Outcomes in Cerebral Palsy through Gamified Multidisciplinary Interventions: Integrating Speech and Upper Extremity Motor Therapy
Role: Co-Investigator
Sponsor Agency: Rutgers University School of Health Professions – Dean’s Intramural Grant
Brief Overview of Aims: This project aims to create a gamified multidisciplinary treatment for children with Cerebral Palsy. It will integrate speech and upper extremity (UE) motor therapy into a cloud-based home system for telerehabilitation, making therapy more accessible. The plan is to develop computer-based therapy games to enhance speech intelligibility and UE function, assess the feasibility and effects of the treatment, and examine the neural correlates of speech production and UE movement. The overall goal is to improve the independence and quality of life of children with CP by refining their treatment to better suit their unique needs.
Total Dollar Amount: $35,000
Funding Period: 9/1/2024- 9/1/2025
Title: Cortical control of walking; brain plasticity following exoskeleton training in Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury
Role: Principal Investigator
Sponsor Agency: New Jersey Commission on Spinal Cord Injury Research
Brief Overview of Aims: This study investigates the cortical modulation of muscle activation and within-brain activation during walking, and the re-organization of cortical control of walking after SCI and intensive exoskeleton-assisted training.
Total Dollar Amount: $200,000
Funding Period: June 1, 2018 – May 31, 2024 (no cost extension)
Title: Combining Physical and Mental Practice for the Rehabilitation of Upper Extremity Movement Impairments Secondary to Traumatic Brain Injury
Role: Principal Investigator
Sponsor Agency: New Jersey Commission on Brain Injury Research
Brief Overview of Aims: This study investigates the effect of motor imagery and performance based feedback on improving rehabilitation outcomes.
Total Dollar Amount: $179,240
Funding Period: July 1, 2017 – May 31, 2021 (completed)
| Year | Name of Honor |
|---|---|
| 2015 | Outstanding Research Scholar: Lebanese International University |
| 2015 | Best Conference Paper Award: 2015 Global Health Annual Meeting |
| 2014 | Best Paper Award: Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair |
| 2010 | Best Paper Award: VIII International Conference on Disability, Virtual Reality and Associated Technologies |
| 2009 | Outstanding Performance Award: Dana Knox Showcase Committee, NJIT |
| 2006 | Best Student Capstone Design Project: Annual Engineering Exhibition |
Selected Publications
- Gohel S, Laino ME, Rajeev-Kumar G, Jenabi M, Peck K, Hatzoglou V, Tabar V, Holodny AI, Vachha B. Resting-State Functional Connectivity of the Middle Frontal Gyrus Can Predict Language Lateralization in Patients with Brain Tumors. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2019 Feb;40(2):319-325. doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A5932. Epub 2019 Jan 10. PubMed PMID: 30630835; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6375738.
- Brihmat N, Allexandre D, Bayram MB, Saleh S, Guan X, Yue Guang H, Zhong J, Forrest GF. Safety and effects of a therapeutic 15 Hz rTMS protocol administered at different suprathreshold intensities in able-bodied individuals. J Neurophysiol. 2023 Jan 1;129(1):56-65. doi: 10.1152/jn.00268.2022. Epub 2022 Dec 7. PMID: 36475885.
- Saleh S, Glassen M, Momeni K, Ravi M, Bheemreddy A, Hoxha S, Garbarini E, Yue GH, Forrest, GF. Corticomuscular Connectivity during Walking in Able Bodied and Individuals with Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury. Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2022 Jul;2022:2332-2335. doi:
10.1109/EMBC48229.2022.9871197. PMID: 360861
98. - Patel J, Pattison I, Glassen M, Saleh S, Qui Q, Fluet G, Kaplan E, Tunik E, Nolan KJ., Merians A, Adamovich S. EEG Based Resting State Connectivity Changes in the Motor Cortex Associated with Upper Limb Motor Recovery in the Subacute Period Post-Stroke. Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc, 2022.
- Shenoy Handiru V, Suviseshamuthu ES, Saleh S, Su H, Yue GH, Allexandre D. Identifying neural correlates of balance impairment in traumatic brain injury using partial least squares correlation analysis. J Neural Eng. 2024 Aug 23. doi: 10.1088/1741-2552/ad7320. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39178907.
- Saleh S, Sandroff BM, Vitiello T, Owoeye O, Hoxha A, Hake P, Goverover Y, Wylie G, Yue GH, DeLuca J. The Role of Premotor Areas in Dual Tasking in Healthy Controls and Persons With Multiple Sclerosis: An fNIRS Imaging Study. Front Behav Neurosci. 2018;12:296. PubMed PMID: 30618658; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6297844.
Full Publication List
For more information on the research at the NeuREI lab, please contact Professor Saleh at salehsh@shp.rutgers.edu.
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