Home

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

6 hours ago

Younger stroke is rising fast, and it’s the most overlooked group of all; children. Read on to find out the start of a dedicated ARNI Young People’s Stroke Service!

Three well-powered (adult) studies came out this year. The newest, in Neurology last month, tracked three decades of US cases and found stroke in people aged 20 to 54 had nearly DOUBLED; up 83%. Here in the UK the Oxford Vascular Study found stroke in the under-55s rose 67% between 2002 and 2018 while falling 15% in the over-55s, and a bigger England-wide study this year found it rising again from 2018 to 2024. The main risk factors showing up in younger patients are high blood pressure, diabetes and, in the US data, a sharp rise in substance use.

But stroke goes much younger than that. More than 400 children a year have a stroke in the UK, from babies in the womb through to teenagers, and around 60% of those who survive are left with a lasting physical disability; most often a weak, hard-to-use arm, hand and leg down one side. Stroke is one of the leading causes of acquired disability in childhood, and because people still assume it’s an older person’s condition, it’s badly under-recognised. And we all know that rehab after hospital can finish with families being told their child’s hand is ‘as good as it’s going to get’ and left to it.

I’ve never accepted that a child’s recovery ends when the NHS funding does. ARNI already supports at least 20 children and young people in our ordinary service, with no dedicated strand of their own. So I’m now setting one up with the help of one of our survivors; a dedicated Service, 18 and under, with qualified, DBS-checked instructors re-training children in their own homes alongside a parent, plus a loan pool of child-friendly, game-based rehab tech. It’s not running yet btw; I’m in the middle of setting it up - but I’m glad to say part of it is funded already. Full details to come very soon ok? Watch this space! 😉

Are you a parent of a younger stroke survivor? What happened initially? What have your experiences been? Let us know in the comments below please...
www.arni.co.uk
#ARNIStrokeRehab #StrokeRecovery #YoungStroke #ChildhoodStroke #StrokeRehabilitation
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

7 hours ago

The evidence shows clearly that the cornerstone of effective motor recovery is task-specific practice, a principle underpinned by evidence from neuroscience and motor learning theory. This approach posits that the brain re-organises itself in response to intensive and repetitive functional training, fostering neuroplasticity.

In the private and home rehabilitation settings, stroke survivors can engage in task-specific practice very easily by themselves or with the help of an ARNI Stroke Rehab UK trainer or physio. The rationale is that by repeatedly and intensively practicing meaningful, real-world activities, from lifting a cup to getting dressed, the brain reorganises neural pathways, improving the control over motor functions relevant to those specific tasks.
www.arni.co.uk

#strokearmrehab #StrokeRehab #neuroplasticity #strokeexercise #strokerehabilitation #strokerecovery #neurorehab #strokesurvivorscan #neuroplasticity #exerciseafterstroke #strokerecoveryexercises
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

11 hours ago

Wide-based gait training:
This is the perfect balance exercise for survivors who want to improve their walking ability. Stand with your legs spaced apart (a wider stance creates a more stable base to balance on). Practice walking with this stance until comfortable. Then, gradually narrow the distance between your legs. This is a great way to improve your gait.

If you want a trainer to help you with this, and other exercises, then call us on 0203 053 0111 or email support@arni.uk.com to find out if there's a trainer near you.
www.arni.co#neuroplasticityi#strokerehabilitationa#strokerecoveryo#ARNIstrokerehabr#strokeexerciser#neurorehabr#strokesurvivorscanr#StrokeRehabr#arnistrokecharityarity
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

14 hours ago

Approximately 40% of stroke survivors experience this difficulty: to comprehend or produce spoken or written language caused by a cerebrovascular accident. In half of these cases the language impairment still persists one year post-stroke. Aphasia has wide-ranging effects on the ability to function and quality of life of stroke survivors and easily leads to social isolation.
If you need help, ARNI SLT Telerehab can now help YOU, right now, wherever you are in the world!
The latest evidence shows clearly that you can conquer aphasia very successfully with the help of speech and language therapy.
And it also shows that SLT Telerehab is just as effective as in-person, face to face treatment.
We have a team of highly experienced low-cost specialist SLTs (all post-grads from Universities such as UCL, the University of Cape Town etc) who are available to help you right now, in your home, via Zoom. You get a one to one hourly service, based around your diary needs, from the comfort of your own home, with a highly experienced specialist speech and language therapist. Please enquire to arni.uk.com/get-remote-speech-language-help-now/ !
#aphasia #strokesurvivors #strokerecovery #strokerehabilitation #StrokeRehab #AphasiaAwareness #neurorehabilitation #arni #exerciseafterstroke #strokeexercise #strokerecoveryexercises #neuroplasticity #ARNIstrokerehab
www.arni.co.uk
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

3 days ago

Have a great weekend.
www.arni.co.uk #exerciseafterstroke #strokerecovery #strokerehabilitation #strokerecoveryexercises #neurorehabilitation #neuroplasticity #strokeexercise #strokesurvivorscan #neurorehab
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

4 days ago

If stroke survivors fail to move their muscles (either through active exercise or passive range of motion), they may develop a condition called learned non-use. This condition causes your brain to have even more difficulty paying attention to the affected muscles, therefore making it harder to rehabilitate these muscles and over-relying on your non-affected side. This is where the phrase “use it or lose it!” comes from.
www.arni.co.uk
#useitorloseit #neuroplasticity #ARNIstrokerehab #strokerehab #strokerehabilitation #strokesurvivorscan #neurorehab #strokerecovery #strokeexercise
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

4 days ago

Could a stroke rehab exoskeleton really cost about the same as a refurb Iphone?!? Two graduates in the Philippines reckon so...

Jabez Bote and Ada Koreen Bacay, from the University of the Philippines, have built a wearable device called OrthoFlex to help stroke survivors get movement back in a weak arm. And they've worked out the prototype costs around £45 to build, with a proposed retail price of around £130. Similar devices, they reckon, start at around £330. So this is an absolute fraction of the usual thing I've revealed in pasts ARNI Stroke Rehab posts about exos...

The device looks sensibly simple. It’s a motor-driven elbow exoskeleton; you strap your affected arm in, connect the power, and pick flexion or extension exercises (bending and straightening the elbow) through a phone app. The motor then guides the elbow through the reps. which, as you know, is what drives recovery.

Two things in the design are smart; it’s built to be repairable (parts can be swapped or fixed rather than binning the whole unit) - and there’s a mechanical limit to cap the range of movement, ie a physical stop so the motor can’t push the elbow too far,... a simple, cheap safety idea.

This is obvs still a prototype; it'll needs proper development and testing for safety, usability and whether it actually works in real stroke rehab - or whether it's just unwieldy and a bit rubbish.

So, can cheap and simple really be done? To my mind, yes, possibly - and this is how it could be - a) strip it to one joint, b) make it repairable c) let a phone do the 'smart' bit d) get the price down to where we can afford one ,e) make is safe and simple and f) market it to us and make it WORK for people.

Whether OrthoFlex ever ACTUALLY itself makes it through to people’s homes, who knows; but the thinking behind it is commendable, I think - esp from these young grads. What do you think?? Let me know in the comments below! 😉

www.arni.co.uk
#ARNIStrokeRehab #StrokeRecovery #Exoskeleton #StrokeRehabilitation #AssistiveTech
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

4 days ago

Every exercise you do isn't just 'one' exercise and every workout isn't just a 'workout'. Everything you do is related. They are all just a point on a continuum that must constantly be improving. Improvement is the name of the game!

If you want some help with your recovery call us on 0203 053 0111 or email support@arni.uk.com to find out if t here's a trainer near you who can help you w#strokerehabilitationw#strokerecoveryt#ARNIstrokerehabo#neurorehabc#StrokeRehabt#arnistrokecharityh#arnistrokee#strokeexercisec#strokesurvivorscan##ARNIstrokerehabstrokesurvivorscan #ARNIstrokerehab
... See MoreSee Less

ARNI Stroke Rehab & Recovery

4 days ago

Exercise: Hip push-pulls

This movement is fantastic. It is a static, gross motor movement exercise which can be turned into a warm-up exercise. It resembles a deadlift movement with no weight.

Find out more about this exercise in The Successful Stroke Survivor book by Tom. Balchin
www.arni.co.uk
#neuroplasticity #strokerehabilitation #neurorehab #strokeexercise #StrokeRehab #strokesurvivorscan #strokerecovery #ARNIstrokerehab
... See MoreSee Less