2007 Heart-Brain summit proceedings

Andreas Luft, MD

Department of Neurology,
University of Tübingen, Germany

Richard Macko, MD

Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Baltimore Veterans Administration Medical Center, and Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

 

Larry Forrester, PhD

Department of Physical Therapy and
Rehabilitation Sciences, University of
Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

 

Andrew Goldberg, MD

Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Baltimore Veterans Administration Medical Center, and Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

 

Daniel F. Hanley, MD, Professor

Acute Care Neurology, and Director, Division of Brain Injury Outcomes,
The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions,
Baltimore, MD

dhanley@jhmi.edu

Back to 2007 Proceedings Contents

ABSTRACT

A plateau in recovery within the first few months of rehabilitative therapy was assumed to be the norm in stroke survivors. Recent studies in our laboratory examined the effect of 6 months of treadmill exercise training in chronically disabled stroke survivors. Treadmill exercise improves fitness and walking ability in patients when initiated 6 months or more following their index stroke. Functional imaging studies show that such exercise also induces subcortical reorganization in these patients. Future investigations will explore the relationship between these functional and structural effects and characterize the therapeutic mechanisms of post-stroke rehabilitation. Nonetheless, treadmill exercise appears to have motor, cardiac, and daily functional benefits in stroke survivors.

CITATIONS

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2. Michael K, Macko RF
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   Treadmill training improves fitness reserve in chronic stroke patients. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2001; 82:879–884.
   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11441372
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   Treadmill exercise rehabilitation improves ambulatory function and cardiovascular fitness in patients with chronic stroke. A randomized, controlled trial. Stroke 2005; 36:2206–2211.
   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16151035
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   Treadmill aerobic training improves glucose tolerance and indices of insulin sensitivity in disabled stroke survivors: a preliminary report. Stroke 2007; 38:2752–2758.
   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17702957
6. Luft AR, Macko R, Forrester L, Villagra F, Hanley D.
   CLEVELAND CLINIC JOURNAL OF MEDICINE VOLUME 75 • SUPPLEMENT 2 MARCH 2008 S85 LUFT AND COLLEAGUES
   FIGURE 2. Brain activation before and after treadmill training is sampled in a stroke survivor using functional magnetic resonance imaging during unilateral knee movements. A plexiglass scaffold has been custom-designed to define range of motion and minimize concomitant head motion. Subcortical reorganization induced by aerobic locomotor training in chronic stroke survivors [abstract]. Poster presented at: Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience; November 15, 2005; Washington, DC.
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   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12353246
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