Motor behavior unmasks residual cognition in disorders of consciousness

Disorders of consciousness (DOC) are a common consequence of severe
brain injuries, and clinical evaluation is critical to provide a correct
diagnosis and prognosis. The revised Motor Behavior Tool (MBT-r) is a
clinical complementary tool aiming to identify subtle motor behaviors that
might reflect residual cognition in DOC. In this prospective study including
30 DOC patients in the early stage after brain injury, we show that the
revised MBT-r has an excellent inter-rater agreement and has the ability to
identify a subgroup of patients, underestimated by the Coma Recovery
Scale-Revised, showing residual cognition and a subsequent recovery of
consciousness.