Deans' stroke musings: Hand splinting for poststroke spasticity: A randomized controlled trial

Changing stroke rehab and research worldwide now.Time is Brain! trillions and trillions of neurons that DIE each day because there are NO effective hyperacute therapies besides tPA(only 12% effective). I have 523 posts on hyperacute therapy, enough for researchers to spend decades proving them out. These are my personal ideas and blog on stroke rehabilitation and stroke research. Do not attempt any of these without checking with your medical provider. Unless you join me in agitating, when you need these therapies they won't be there.

What this blog is for:

My blog is not to help survivors recover, it is to have the 10 million yearly stroke survivors light fires underneath their doctors, stroke hospitals and stroke researchers to get stroke solved. 100% recovery. The stroke medical world is completely failing at that goal, they don't even have it as a goal. Shortly after getting out of the hospital and getting NO information on the process or protocols of stroke rehabilitation and recovery I started searching on the internet and found that no other survivor received useful information. This is an attempt to cover all stroke rehabilitation information that should be readily available to survivors so they can talk with informed knowledge to their medical staff. It lays out what needs to be done to get stroke survivors closer to 100% recovery. It's quite disgusting that this information is not available from every stroke association and doctors group.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Hand splinting for poststroke spasticity: A randomized controlled trial

Ask your therapist and doctor what this means for you.
http://www.naric.com/research/rehab/record.cfm?search=2&type=all&criteria=J64286&phrase=no&rec=119407
Abstract: Study examined the effect of volar and dorsal splinting on the spasticity of the wrist flexor muscles in patients with stroke. Thirty-nine subjects were randomized to use a dorsal or volar splint or no splint (control group). All the patients underwent home-based exercise program, and the experimental groups used either dorsal or volar hand splints according to their distribution. The primary outcome measure was spasticity assessed clinically by the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and electrophysiologically by H latency and Hmax:Mmax ratio of flexor carpi radialis. Secondary outcome measure was passive range of motion (PROM) of wrist extension. Results showed no statistically significant difference in spasticity parameters (MAS, H latency, Hmax:Mmax ratio) or in wrist PROM between the volar and dorsal splint groups. These splints could be recommended as part of an integrative approach without expecting a major clinical effect rather than as an alternative to other treatments.