Course Description:

A stroke is a devastating injury to the brain that affects all facets of life and the long road to recovery is often in the hands of patients or their caregivers. This course is written by a physical therapist who is a stroke survivor. It focuses on effects that may occur after surviving a stroke in parts of the brain other than the cerebellum. (For strokes affecting the cerebellum, please see course #1530 Cerebellar Stroke: What Makes It Different?) The author goes into detail about the neuroplasticity of the brain, the role of the protein BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) in patients’ functional recovery and how to increase it, and new evidence for treating a patient who is both in the acute and chronic stages of stroke recovery. In addition, other more innovative treatments are introduced including mirror therapy, action observation, virtual reality, and music therapy. Different stages/phases of recovery after a stroke will be defined and discussed, including need for sleep and rest, the emotional effects that a stroke may cause and the need to treat these patients with more empathy. This is a must course for any therapist working in neuro rehab!