Dr. phil. Brigitte C. Kaufmann
Projektleiterin SNF Ambizione
T +41 41 229 54 49
brigitte.kaufmann@unilu.ch
Frohburgstrasse 3, Raum 1.B14
CV
Brigitte C. Kaufmann studierte Psychologie an den Universitäten Freiburg und Bern mit Schwerpunkt auf klinischer Psychologie und Neuropsychologie. Anschliessend doktorierte sie an der Graduate School for Health Sciences der Universität Bern. In ihrer Dissertation untersuchte sie, wie ein Schlaganfall die visuell-räumliche Aufmerksamkeit verändert. Im Zentrum stand dabei der horizontale Neglect, eine häufige Aufmerksamkeitsstörung nach Schädigungen der rechten Hirnhälfte. Betroffene nehmen die linke Seite ihrer Umgebung nur eingeschränkt wahr, was im Alltag unter anderem zu Schwierigkeiten beim Lesen, Navigieren oder Vermeiden von Hindernissen führen kann.
Nach ihrem PhD war sie mit einem SNSF Early Postdoc.Mobility-Stipendium als Postdoktorandin am Paris Brain Institute (ICM) tätig. Dort vertiefte sie ihre Expertise in den kognitiven Neurowissenschaften und erweiterte ihre methodischen Kompetenzen insbesondere im Bereich der bildgebenden Verfahren.
Seit März 2026 ist sie an der Fakultät für Verhaltenswissenschaften und Psychologie der Universität Luzern tätig. Dort leitet sie das vom Schweizerischen Nationalfonds geförderte Ambizione-Projekt «VERA – Unravelling Vertical Visuospatial Attention to Enhance Post-Stroke Recovery». Während die horizontale Dimension des Neglects bereits gut untersucht ist, wurde die vertikale Dimension der visuell-räumlichen Aufmerksamkeit – also die Orientierung nach oben und unten – bislang nur wenig erforscht, obwohl sie im Alltag eine zentrale Rolle spielt, etwa beim Erkennen von Ampeln, beim Absuchen von Regalen oder beim Treppensteigen. Das Projekt kombiniert Augenbewegungsanalysen, Magnetresonanztomographie und nicht-invasive Hirnstimulation, um die vertikale Aufmerksamkeit, ihre neuronalen Grundlagen und ihre Bedeutung für die Rehabilitation nach Schlaganfall systematisch zu untersuchen.
Publikationen
- Kaufmann, B. C., Nyffeler, T., Geiser, N., Nef, T., & Cazzoli, D. (2025). Auditory motion stimulation as an add-on therapeutical approach is feasible, enjoyable, and associated with a significant improvement of neglect outcome: A non-randomized, controlled group-matched study. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation. https://doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2025.2476068
- Nyffeler, T., Kaufmann, B. C., Rühe, H., Geiser, N., & Cazzoli, D. (2025). Incidence of Visuospatial Neglect in Acute Stroke: Assessment and Stroke Characteristics in an Unselected 1-Year Cohort. Stroke. https://doi.org/10.1161/STROKEAHA.124.048907
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2025). Low-dimensional controllability of brain networks. PLOS Computational Biology. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012691
- Dampfhoffer, A., Kaufmann, B. C., Nyffeler, T., & Cazzoli, D. (2025). Neglect after isolated thalamic stroke: a systematic review of the literature. Cerebrovascular Diseases, 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1159/000545473
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Nyffeler, T., Nef, T., Geiser, N., Angelva, N. E., … Single, M. (2025). Smartphone-Based Auditory Motion Stimulation for Hemispatial Neglect: Development and Usability Study (Preprint). Journal of Medical Internet Research. https://doi.org/10.2196/preprints.82442
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2025). Unveiling spatial and non-spatial aspects of neglect in everyday behavior. Cortex. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2024.10.002
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2024). Comparison of uni- and multimodal motion stimulation on visual neglect: A proof-of-concept study. Cortex, 171, 194-203 ff. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2023.10.018
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2024). Intracortical recordings reveal vision-to-action cortical gradients driving human exogenous attention. Nature communications. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-46013-4
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2024). Listening to classical music influences brain connectivity in post-stroke aphasia: a pilot study. Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rehab.2024.101825
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Pastore-Wapp, M., & Nyffeler, T. (2024). Severity-dependent interhemispheric white matter connectivity predicts post-stroke neglect recovery. The Journal of Neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.1523/jneurosci.1311-23.2024
- Kaufmann, B. C., & Camenzind, M. (2024). The phenomenology of pareidolia in healthy subjects and patients with left- or right-hemispheric stroke. Heliyon. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.HELIYON.2024.E27414
- Kaufmann, B., Nyffeler, T., & Cazzoli, D. (2024). Vertical neglect towards the lower space after bilateral parietal strokes – A case study. Cortex. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2024.10.012
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2023). A case study of left visual neglect after right pontine lesion: pathophysiological evidence for the infratentorial involvement in human visual attention. Journal of Neurophysiology, 129 (6), 1534-1539 ff. https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.00123.2023
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Pastore-Wapp, M., & Nyffeler, T. (2023). Joint impact on attention, alertness and inhibition of lesions at a frontal white matter crossroad. Brain, 146 (4), 1467-1482 ff. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awac359
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2023). Causal evidence for the multiple-demand brain network: it takes three to tango. Brain, 146 (12), e115-e116 ff. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awad217
- Pastore-Wapp, M., Kaufmann, B. C., Nyffeler, T., & Bohlhalter, S. (2023). Feasibility of a combined intermittent theta-burst stimulation and video game-based dexterity training in Parkinson’s disease. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 20 (1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12984-023-01123-w
- Geiser, N., Maaijwee, N., Cazzoli, D., Nef, T., Rühe, H., Nyffeler, T., & Kaufmann, B. C. (2022). Visual Neglect after PICA Stroke-A Case Study. Brain sciences, 12 (2), 290 ff. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12020290
- Kaufmann, B. C., Geiser, N., Nyffeler, T., & Cazzoli, D. (2022). Effects of Virtual Reality–Based Multimodal Audio-Tactile Cueing in Patients With Spatial Attention Deficits: Pilot Usability Study. JMIR Serious Games, 2 (10), e34884 ff. https://doi.org/10.2196/34884
- Cazzoli, D., Nyffeler, T., & Kaufmann, B. C. (2022). Auditory spatial cueing reduces neglect after right-hemispheric stroke: A proof of concept study. Cortex, 148, 152-167 ff. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2021.12.009
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2022). Response to the Letter by Schenke et al. on "Auditory spatial cueing reduces neglect after righthemispheric stroke: A proof of concept study" by Kaufmann et al., 2022. Cortex. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CORTEX.2022.09.009
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2022). The connectional anatomy of visual mental imagery: evidence from a patient with left occipito-temporal damage. Brain Structure and Function. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1007/s00429-022-02505-x
- Cazzoli, D., Nyffeler, T., & Kaufmann, B. C. (2021). Development of a Search Task Using Immersive Virtual Reality: Proof-of-Concept Study. JMIR Serious Games; JMIR, 9 (3), e29182 ff. https://doi.org/10.2196/29182
- Cazzoli, D., Nyffeler, T., & Kaufmann, B. C. (2021). Visual Neglect After an Isolated Lesion of the Superior Colliculus. JAMA Neurology, 78 (12), 1531 ff. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2021.3863
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2021). Anterior insula and inferior frontal gyrus: where ventral and dorsal visual attention systems meet. Brain Communications, 1, fcaa220 ff. https://doi.org/10.1093/braincomms/fcaa220
- Müri, R. M., Koenig-Bruhin, M., Cazzoli, D., Nef, T., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2021). Video-Oculography During Free Visual Exploration to Detect Right Spatial Neglect in Left-Hemispheric Stroke Patients With Aphasia: A Feasibility Study. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 15, 640049 ff. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2021.640049
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Pflugshaupt, T., Bohlhalter, S., & Nyffeler, T. (2020). Eyetracking during free visual exploration detects neglect more reliably than paper-pencil tests. Cortex, 223–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2020.04.021
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2020). Immersive 3D Virtual Reality Cancellation Task for Visual Neglect Assessment: A Pilot Study. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 180 ff. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2020.00180
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2020). Test-Retest-Reliability of Video-Oculography During Free Visual Exploration in Right-Hemispheric Stroke Patients With Neglect. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 731 ff. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.00731
- Kaufmann, B. C. (2020). The right anterior temporal lobe critically contributes to magnitude knowledge. Brain Communications. https://doi.org/10.1093/BRAINCOMMS/FCAA157
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2020). Visual Exploration Area in Neglect: A New Analysis Method for Video-Oculography Data Based on Foveal Vision. Frontiers in Neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.3389/FNINS.2019.01412
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., & Nyffeler, T. (2019). Re‐fixation and perseveration patterns in neglect patients during free visual exploration. European Journal of Neuroscience, 10, 1244–1253. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.14309
- Cazzoli, D., Nyffeler, T., Kaufmann, B. C., Pflugshaupt, T., & Bohlhalter, S. (2019). Theta burst stimulation in neglect after stroke: functional outcome and response variability origins. Brain, 4, 992–1008. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awz029
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Pastore-Wapp, M., Bohlhalter, S., & Nyffeler, T. (2019). cTBS over contralesional homologue areas deteriorates speech output in isolated apraxia of speech after stroke. Brain Stimulation, 4, 1069–1071. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brs.2019.03.024
- Cazzoli, D., Kaufmann, B. C., Pflugshaupt, T., Bohlhalter, S., & Nyffeler, T. (2018). The spatial distribution of perseverations in neglect patients during a nonverbal fluency task depends on the integrity of the right putamen. Neuropsychologia, 42–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.01.025
