by Jordan Allen on behalf of Valley Hospital Medical Center (Las Vegas, NV)
Suffering a stroke is a frightening and life-threatening experience. Recovering from a stroke can be a painful and frustrating ordeal. Training your body to do basic functions we take for granted, such as speech and movement, does not happen overnight. It is a journey that requires many steps and a significant investment of time and energy.
You can hasten a recovery from a stroke and regain some quality of life by following a few of these tips:
• Stay active: Exercise is an important ingredient for maintaining a healthy body no matter what age you are. It is a great tool for preventing a second stroke. Regular exercise keeps your weight down and reduces stress. The severity of a stroke may limit what physical activity you can do at first. It is important to do whatever exercises you can do each day. Staying sedentary will slow down your recovery.
• Eat a healthy diet: What goes into your body can directly impact what sort of long-term effects a stroke has on you. It is important to eat a balanced diet. Eat meals that are rich in fiber and contain generous amounts of lean protein. Try to include foods or a supplement rich in Omega-3 fatty acids such as EPA and DHA. Avoid foods that are high in fat, calories, sugar and contain excessive amounts of salt.
• Get help around your house: Daily activities become much more difficult following a stroke. It can be a chore to do basic things like dressing yourself or preparing meals. Do not try to go at it alone. Enlist the help of family members, friends or paid services to help you with different errands and chores until you have recovered sufficiently to do them yourself.
• Work with therapists: Licensed therapists in a primary stroke center are a lifeline for stroke victims in helping them regain quality of life. Therapists can help a patient recovering from a stroke regain speech, memory and the ability to walk. They can work with a patient one-on-one and attend to their specific needs. Let them assist your doctor in putting together an effective recovery plan for you.
• Stay positive: Things will not automatically go back to the way they were before the stroke. It may take some time to make sufficient progress in speech therapy and physical therapy before you feel like you again. It is important to cultivate a positive attitude. Embrace challenges and work to conquer them instead of allowing yourself to sink into depression.
In part 1 of this blog post we discussed the benefits of post-stroke treatment as well as some facilities that offer post-stroke treatment. In this blog post we will continue to discuss healthcare facilities that offer post-stroke treatment.
Outpatient Units
Outpatient units are commonly part of a larger hospital complex and offer survivors access to physicians as well as a number of therapists who specialize in therapy.
- Services – One or more treatment areas
- Setting – Doctor’s office, outpatient unit of a hospital, other outpatient centers as well as some adult day centers
- Frequency – two-three days per week
- Likely Candidates – Stroke survivors who have their medical issues under control enough to continue to live in their own homes and are able to travel for treatment
Long-Term Facilities
Long-term facilities commonly offer rehabilitative services that are more variable than the services at acute post-stroke treatment and outpatient units. High quality long-term facilities commonly place a greater emphasis on stroke rehab, whereas traditional nursing facilities emphasize residential care.
- Services – One or more treatment areas
- Setting – Nursing home, skilled nursing facility
- Frequency – two-three days per week
- Likely Candidates – Stroke survivors who have their medical issues under control but still require 24-hour nursing care
Home Health Agencies
Home health agencies allows for an increase in flexibility so that survivors can tailor their rehabilitation program and follow a personal schedule. Post-stroke treatment patients commonly participate in an intensive level of rehab several hours a week but can also participate in a less or more demanding regimen.
- Services – Specific rehab services for one or more treatment areas
- Setting – In the home
- Frequency – As needed
- Likely Candidates – Stroke survivors who live at home that are unable to travel to get to their rehab
For more information about post-stroke treatment, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
The goal of the majority of stroke treatment programs is to restore as much independence to the stroke survivor as possible by improving their mental, physical and emotional functions. This must be done in a way that preserves the individual’s dignity and motivates them to re-learn basic life skills that may have been negatively affected by the stroke, such as dressing, walking and eating.
Stroke rehabilitation options will depend on several factors including degree of disability, ability to tolerate intense rehabilitation, insurance coverage, available funding as well as your geographical area. The main stroke treatment options for survivors include acute care (inpatient) and rehab hospitals, long-term facilities, outpatient facilities and home health agencies.
Acute Care Stroke Treatment Units
Some impatient rehabilitation units are freestanding while others are part of larger hospital complexes. Stroke survivors commonly stay in the facility for 2 to 3 weeks while engaging in coordinated and intensive therapy programs.
- Services – 24-hour medical care and a full range of rehab services
- Setting – Hospital or special stroke treatment unit of a hospital
- Frequency – Several hours each day (most demanding)
Likely Candidates – Stroke survivors who have multiple medical issues
For more information about stroke treatment, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
In part 1 of this blog post we discussed the benefits of stroke treatment products as well as what to expect from the companies that produce these products. In this blog post we will continue to discuss what to expect from companies that produce stroke treatment products.
Medical science has recently discovered that, through the mechanism of neuroplasticity, patients are capable of substantial recovery of the motor functions lost due to stroke. Developers of stroke treatment products believe that properly designed therapy systems using this science can enable patients to recover a level of function previously thought to be impossible. Based on this belief, these developers have steadfastly focused on advancing the rehabilitation technologies available for this group of patients. They have worked with the best stroke research centers and stroke rehab clinicians in the country to combine the latest medical science with award winning technologies.
These efforts have produced the first Active Repetitive Motion™ therapy solution. This system is fundamental to assisting the brain in neuromuscular re-education making significant motor recovery available for many stroke survivors. These developers have ‘raised the bar’ in terms of the treatment and long-term results that stroke patients and their families can expect.
But technology alone is not sufficient to improve the lives of so many survivors. High quality stroke treatment products have received accolades for their ease of use, their engaging video games that encourage patients to work longer and harder at their therapy, and their revolutionary charting capabilities that provide detailed measures of patient compliance and progress during their recovery. Developers of innovative stroke treatment products deliver a product that truly advances the state of neuromuscular rehabilitation.
Everyone should be excited about the future of stroke therapy products. The companies developing them will continue to work closely with stroke survivors, therapists, and researchers to establish high quality products that improve the lives of stroke survivors and their families. The resulting pipeline of new products is positioned to improve the lives of more and more people.
For more information about stroke treatment products, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
Have you or a loved one recently suffered a stroke? Are you looking for information about stroke therapy products and their developers? Then you have come to the right place. This blog post will discuss stroke therapy products and their benefits as well as what to expect from the companies that produce these products.
Stroke therapy products are commonly used in physical therapy and occupational therapy programs where they help to improve the quality of life of stroke survivors.
Neuromuscular rehabilitation is hard work, but stroke therapy products can make it fun. Companies who develop these products have worked very hard at trying to create products that engage patients with interactive games while providing the repetitive motion therapy necessary for recovery. These companies share a goal to improve the quality of life for stroke and other brain injury survivors.
These companies are commonly based on strong relationships with researchers and clinical advisors, scientific research and technology. In many cases, their research has been largely funded by the National Institutes of Health. They have spent years developing and testing robust products based on latest clinical evidence. Their stroke therapy products are based on the most recent research in repetitive therapy for neuro-motor injuries and designed with input from top researchers and clinicians.
Developers of stroke rehabilitation products strive to utilize appropriate technologies to address the neuromuscular rehabilitation needs of patients and clinicians, to retain dignity, and to improve the quality of life of stroke survivors and their families. .
For more information about stroke therapy products, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
In part 1 of this blog post we discuss how research has found that intense, interactive movement therapy can improve function in both upper and lower extremities that have been immobilized by stroke and other brain injuries as well as other ways stroke rehab can improve a stroke survivor’s quality of life. In this blog post we will continue to discuss the benefits of stroke rehab products.
High quality stroke rehab products offer in-clinic and home use products that help stroke survivors regain motion in the hand and foot, and improve quality of life. These devices are easy to set up, easy to learn, and make repetitive occupational and physical therapy for stroke survivors more enjoyable.
These stroke rehab products for occupational and physical therapy for stroke patients are based on the most recent research in repetitive therapy for neuro-motor injuries and designed with input from top researchers and clinicians. These products have gone through years of development and produced strong clinical evidence.
For patients, they create a fun, interactive training environment that keeps their attention focused on the repetitive training tasks that are necessary for recovery.
Stroke rehabilitation products seek to translate the most recent advances in neuromuscular therapy and neuro rehab research into evidence-based clinical practice. By working with top researchers throughout the US in their product design and research activities, the producers of these products provide an important bridge between research and practice in neurotherapy. Continual product improvement as new scientific evidence emerges is assured.
Contact your doctor for more information about stroke rehab products, which provide an interactive training environment that encourages the stroke survivor to improve their hand and foot functions and to see how these products can improve function in the upper and lower extremity of stroke and other brain injury survivors.
For more information about stroke rehab products, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
If you are a stroke survivor, or a family member or friend of a stroke survivor looking for information about stroke therapy and stroke rehabilitation products, you’ve come to the right place. This blog post will discuss stroke therapy for stroke survivors as well as discuss how stroke rehabilitation products can improve a stroke survivor’s upper and lower extremity functions and their quality of life.
We know how devastating a stroke can be. They can happen to most anyone without warning, leaving families feeling saddened, overwhelmed and hopeless. Stroke therapy and stroke rehabilitation products can help change those feelings. The road to recovery may be long and there is a lot of hard work to be done, but therapy and rehabilitation can help.
If you or anyone in your family has suffered from a stroke, you know by now that neuromuscular and neurological rehabilitation is a long-term proposition. When you lose the ability to move a hand or foot due to stroke or other brain injury, you are left feeling frustrated and sometimes hopeless. Many hours and many repetitions of movement therapy exercises are necessary for regaining motion and improving your quality of life.
Research has found that intense, interactive movement therapy can improve function in both upper and lower extremities that have been immobilized by stroke and other brain injuries. Unlike traditional physical therapy for stroke survivors, innovative stroke rehabilitation products create an interactive, game-like environment that keeps you engaged. In some cases, this stroke therapy can be done in the comfort of your own home! These stroke therapy products have proven to be very successful in improving the quality of life for stroke survivors.
For more information about stroke rehabilitation products, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
In part 1 of this blog post we discussed the goal of most stroke rehab programs as well as what type of health care professionals are responsible for caring for stroke survivors. In this blog post we will continue to discuss the various health care professionals that care for stroke survivors.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapy involves the stroke survivor re-learning the skills needed for everyday life including dressing, eating, taking care of yourself and going to the bathroom.
Similar to physical therapists, occupational therapists are commonly concerned with improving sensory and motor abilities. They help stroke patients relearn skills needed for performing activities/occupations such as grooming, housecleaning and preparing meals. As the name suggests, occupational therapists can also be involved in helping retrain higher-level function necessary for survivors to resume employment.
Speech Therapy
Stroke survivors may have problems thinking, communicating or swallowing. Speech therapy involves techniques to reduce and compensate for any or all of these problems.
Speech-language pathologists help stroke patients with aphasia relearn to use language or develop an alternate means of communication. They also help stroke survivors improve their ability to swallow, and they work with survivors to develop social and problem solving skills needed for the patient to cope with the after affects of their stroke.
Recreational Therapy
Therapeutic recreation or recreational therapy reintroduces leisure and social activities to a stroke survivor’s life. Activities may include swimming, going to plays, museums and libraries, or taking art and music lessons. An important factor of recreational therapy is reintegrating with the community and developing social skills.
For more information about stroke rehab, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
The goal of most stroke rehabilitation programs is to restore as much independence to the stroke victim as possible by improving their mental, physical and emotional functions. This must be done in a way that preserves the stroke survivor’s dignity and motivates them to re-learn basic life skills that may have been negatively affected by the stroke, such as dressing, walking and eating.
Stroke rehabilitation should begin in the hospital, as quickly as possible after the stroke. If the survivor is medically stable, rehabilitation may begin just one day after the stroke and should be continued even after release from the hospital, when needed. For other survivors, stroke rehabilitation can take place months or years after the stroke as the survivor’s conditions improve or in some cases, worsen.
Stroke rehabilitation options will depend on several factors including degree of disability, ability to tolerate intense rehabilitation, insurance coverage, available funding as well as your geographical area. The main options for survivors include acute care (inpatient) and rehab hospitals, sub-acute facilities, long-term facilities, outpatient facilities and home health agencies.
Health Care Team
During the multiple phases of stroke rehabilitation, the survivor will most likely work with a team of health care professionals from different specialties. It is important for a survivor to get to know their health care team and feel comfortable addressing any rehabilitation issue with them
Services delivered during stroke rehabilitation include physical, occupational, speech and language therapies, specialty medical or psychological services and therapeutic recreation.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy helps stroke survivors restore physical functions and skills like range of motion and walking as well as addresses issues such as one-sided or partial paralysis, foot drop or faulty balance.
Physical therapists are trained to treat individuals with disabilities related to sensory and motor impairments. These therapists are trained in aspects of physiology and anatomy related to normal function, specifically focusing on movement. They assess the stroke patient’s endurance, strength, gait abnormalities, sensory deficits and range of motion to design individualized stroke rehab programs aimed at regaining control over sensory and motor functions.
Physical therapists help stroke survivors regain the use of impaired limbs, establish ongoing exercise programs to help patients retain their newly developed skills and teach compensatory strategies that help reduce the effect of remaining deficits.
For more information about stroke rehabilitation, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
Kinetic Muscles, Inc., an innovator of stroke rehabilitation products and in-home teletherapy systems, was recently featured in an article published by OPEN MINDS Weekly News Wire.
The article entitled “Kinetic Muscles Launches In-Home Stroke Teletherapy & Neurorehabilitaion System” discussed Kinetic Muscles Inc.’s Hand Mentor™ and Foot Mentor™ and how these products are available for in-home teletherapy and can be used in the convenience of their own home while their therapy times and their progress are monitored remotely by a specially-trained therapist.
OPEN MINDS Weekly News Wire is a weekly publication distributed by OPEN MINDS. OPEN MINDS is a market research and management consulting firm specializing in addictions, mental health, disability support, social services and related public health sectors of the health and human services. Their mission is to provide payers and provider organizations serving consumers with complex health and human services needs with market and management knowledge needed to improve their organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
For more information about teletherapy, contact Kinetic Muscles, Inc.
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