Neurorestoratology: New Advances in Clinical Therapy.

Neurorestorative treatments have been able to improve the quality of life for patients suffering from neurological diseases and damages since the concept of Neurorestoratology was proposed. The discipline of Neurorestoratology focuses to restore impaired neurological functions and/or structures through the varying neurorestorative mechanisms including neurostimulation or neuromodulation, neuroprotection, neuroplasticity, neuroreplacement, loop reconstruction, remyelination, immunoregulation, angiogenesis or revascularization, and others. The neurorestorative strategies of Neurorestoratology include all therapeutic methods which can restore dysfunctions for patients with neurological diseases and improve their quality of life. The Neurorestoratology is different from the regenerative medicine in nervous system, which mainly focuses the neuroregeneration. It also is different from Neurorehabilitation. Neurorestoratology and Neurorehabilitation shares some functional recovering mechanisms, such as neuroplasticity, especially in the early phase of neurological diseases; but generally Neurorehabilitation mainly focuses to recover neurological functions through making the best use of residual neurological functions, replacing lost neurological functions in the largest degree, and preventing and treating varying complications. Recently, there have been more advances in restoring damaged nerves by cell therapy, neurostimulation/ neuromodulation and brain-computer interface (BCI), neurorestorative surgery, neurorestorative pharmaceutics, and other clinic strategies. Simultaneously related therapeutic guidelines and standards are set up in succession. Based on those advances, clinicians should consider injured and degenerated nervous disorders or diseases in the central nervous system as treatable or neurorestorative disorders. Extending and encouraging further neurorestorative explorations and achieving better clinical efficacy with stronger evidence regarding neurorestoratology will shed new light and discover superior benefits for patients with neurological disorders.