L21: Implementing Intensive Dose in Neurological Rehabilitation Flashcards
What are the 10 principles neurological rehabilitation?
- Use It or Lose It – Failure to drive specific brain functions can lead to functional degradation.
- Use It and Improve It – Training that drives a specific brain function can lead to an enhancement of that function.
- Specificity – The nature of the training experience dictates the nature of the plasticity.
- Repetition Matters – Induction of plasticity requires sufficient repetition.
- Intensity Matters – Induction of plasticity requires sufficient training intensity.
- Time Matters – Different forms of plasticity occur at different times during training.
- Salience Matters – The training experience must be sufficiently salient to induce plasticity (meaningful, important…)
- Age Matters – Training-induced plasticity occurs more readily in younger brains.
- Transference – Plasticity in response to one training experience can enhance the acquisition of similar behaviors.
- Interference – Plasticity in response to one experience can interfere with the acquisition of other behaviors
What are 3 things we know about repetition practice in neuro rehab?
- Task specific practice that is delivered in high dose has been established as an integral ingredient in neurological rehabilitation
- Functional improvement may be accelerated when the dose of task-specific practice is increased
- Animal studies have demonstrated changes in neurological structure AND improved functional performance with >400 repetitions of a functionally meaningful task
- 400-600 repetitions per session of upper limb tasks induce changes to cortical representation and motor skill acquisition
- 1000-2000 steps performed per session to improve stepping
- Different to MSK where the aim is to build strength
- Skill acquisition takes longer learn
Evidence suggests that _____ of repetitions daily of upper extremity practice and _____ of daily repetitions of lower limb practice are required to produce neural change and optimize rehabilitation of function
hundreds; thousands
Current best practice guidelines suggest inpatients in rehabilitation should receive _____ daily of physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy
one-hour
Mean active time in physiotherapy sessions was ____ minutes. On average ____ % of therapy was inactive time. Therapy involving walking practice comprised only_____ minutes per session. What is the implication of this?
32.8; 40%; 8.7
In an hour physio session –> only active for half the time and unactive for the rest
What is the reality of physio in neuro rehab? What does this mean?
- Dose currently provided during rehabilitation (most known about stroke and TBI) is substantially smaller than what is suggested to be required for neuroplastic change
- A large percentage of physiotherapy sessions are spent inactive
- If you get 37 minutes of physiotherapy and are inactive 40% of this time… only 22.2 minutes
- If goal is to achieve 1000 reps of a task… patient needs to be working at 45 reps/minute without resting…. NOT POSSIBLE…
- •The idea of therapy being ONLY what occurs in the rehabilitation space with the therapist needs to be DISMISSED
- Therapy is ALL opportunity for activity throughout the entire day… (and night… 24 hours!)
- Prescribed therapy needs to be optimized (less inactivity)
What are 5 other benefits of intensive rehabilitation except for skill acquition?
- Cardiovascular fitness
- Increased strength, endurance
- Self esteem/sense of achievement
- Earlier discharges?
- Less dependence on discharge?
What are 8 barriers to implementing intensive doses in therapy?
- Time allocated to therapy – traditional models of 1:1 therapy
- Eg. groups (eg. sitting –> upper limb, balance and mobility)
- Safety
- Eg. 30 patients in gym with 6-8 staff –> how have deficits and can have accidents/falls
- Skill of individual therapist
- Lack of space/equipment
- Patient expectations
- They think that they are “done” (eg. older and have had a stroke)
- Difficulty motivating/pushing patients
- When to push patient and when to back off –> social interaction skill
- Staff attitudes (physio and other health disciplines)
- •Reduced quality of intervention performance
Problem: Time allocated to therapy
What is the answer and 4 characteristics?
Shift the notion of what therapy looks like and offer patients more opportunity
- Consider implementing circuit/group classes
- Increase the opportunity for independent/supervised practice
- Be aware of and look to reduce inactive time
- Consider all interactions or any participation in an activity as part of therapy and maximize the opportunity for patients to participate
Problem: Safety/Skill of therapist
What are the 4 answer?
- Consider set up of exercises
- Assess patients suitability for completing independent/supervised exercises
- Consider therapy assistants or family to assist (where appropriate)
- Experience… continually evolve to improve your ability to provide intensive rehabilitation
Problem: Lack of space/equipment
What are the 4 answer?
- Prioritize equipment to maximize available space
- Be innovative to problem solve space issues
- Consider what other areas can be used… eg, ward space, outdoors
- Simplify equipment needs
Problem: Different staff attitudes
What are the 4 answer?
- Evidence
- Education
- Participation
- Demonstrate positive outcomes
Problem: Reduced quality of intervention
What are the 4 answer?
- Targets/appropriate set up that enable patient to perform desired exercise and self-monitor accuracy
- Education
- Use of family/therapy aids
- Prioritize and compromise
Problem: Difficulty motivating and/or pushing patients
What are the 4 answer?
- Education
- As a therapist, be a coach not a friend
- Show patient improvements – however small!
- Link the hard work to patients goals
What are 5 characteristics of coaching/education?
- Educate the patient clearly on the purpose of an
- activity…
- Link the activity to achieving a meaningful goal
- Collaborate with the patient on what is meaningful to them… never assume…
- Give accurate feedback on performance so that a patient is learning during their rehabilitation- Give honest feedback but don’t discourage effort
- Education and learning about rehabilitation is critical for self management of chronic health conditions/disability
How do you implement intensity for weak hip flexors (impairments)?
How do you implement intensity for hip flexion in rolling (part practice)?
How do you implement intensity for weak knee extensors- lower level (impairments)?
How do you implement intensity for weak hip extensors- lower level (impairments)?
How do you implement intensity for weak hip and knee extensors- higher level (impairments)?
How do you implement intensity for hip and knee extension in STS- (whole task)?
How do you implement intensity for progressing STS retraining?
How do you implement intensity for the upper limb?
