In this study researchers aim to improve the collaborative research efforts of the Center for Rehabilitation Research in Neurological Conditions at the Medical University of South Carolina. The Center is comprised of several laboratories, including: the Communication and Swallowing Laboratory; the Locomotor Energetics and Assessment Laboratory; the Locomotor Rehabilitation Laboratory; the Neuromuscular Assessment Laboratory; and the Upper Extremity Motor Function Laboratory. The PI and investigators will recruit for their current and future studies in the above laboratories from the Clinical Database established here. Studies utilizing the Clinical Database will not include PHI but will only link to the Clinical Database individual patient code. This study is completed by completing a simple screening form with study personnel. Medical care/treatment future participation in studies is not influenced by inclusion in this study. We are also recruiting Healthy Controls for this study.
Rehabilitation interventions including resistance training, functional and task-specific therapy, and gait or locomotor training have been shown to be successful in improving motor function in individuals with neurologic disease or injury. Recent investigations conducted in our laboratory indicate that intense resistance training coupled with task-specific functional training lead to significant gains in functional motor recovery. Similarly, gait rehabilitation involving intense treadmill training and/or task-specific locomotor training has been shown to be effective in improving locomotor ability. However, the underlying neural adaptations associated with these therapeutic approaches are not well understood. Our primary goal is to understand the motor control underpinnings of neurologic rehabilitation in order to apply this knowledge to future generations of therapeutic interventions.
RESTORE is a database of individuals who are interested in being contacted about future stroke research at the Medical University of South Carolina. Included in the database is health information and characteristics about the individual's health, stroke, and their recovery. The results of other stroke recovery studies the individual participates in at MUSC will also be in the database. The database and information included will lead to better and more targeted recruitment for stroke recovery projects.
Individuals are being asked to volunteer for a research study. Research studies are voluntary and include only those who choose to take part. The purpose of this research study is to compile a repository of participants who are willing to participate in rehabilitation research studies.
Participants will complete a datasheet that includes contact information and basic medical conditions. Once the datasheet is complete, participants will then await contact from VA Investigators. The study will continue until the participant decides they no longer wish to participate or becomes deceased.
There will be no direct benefit to participants from taking part in this study. The risk associated with this study is a potential loss of confidentiality.
Reflexes are important parts of our movements. When reflexes are not working well, movements are clumsy or even impossible. After stroke, reflex responses may change. Researchers have found that people can learn to increase or decrease a reflex response with training. Recently, we have found that rats and people with partial spinal cord injuries can walk better after they are trained to change a spinal cord reflex. Thus, learning to change a reflex response may help people recover after a nervous system injury. In this study, we aim to examine whether learning to change a spinal reflex through operant conditioning training can improve movement function recovery in people after stroke or other damage to the nervous system.
This is an ancillary study on the Phase 3 parent trial (CREST-2) in which patients with asymptomatic high grade carotid artery stenosis have enrolled to receive either a novel intensive medical management plan alone, or in combination with either Carotid Endarterectomy (CEA) or Carotid artery stenting (CAS). Patients enrolled in CREST-H will undergo a baseline MRI and some patients will also undergo a followup MRI at 1 year. The purpose is to determine whether cognition can be improved by revascularization among the subset of CREST-2 patients with hemodynamic impairment and mild cognitive impairment at baseline.
Hand disability after stroke has a profound negative impact on functional ability and independence. Hand therapy may be augmented with sensory stimulation for better outcomes. We have developed a novel sensory stimulation - unfelt vibration applied via a wristwatch. Participants will receive this novel stimulation with hand task practice therapy or therapy only to determine if use of this stimulation is better for recovery.
The purpose of the study is to compare the effects of apixaban (also known as Eliquis®) with aspirin in patients with atrial fibrillation and a recent brain hemorrhage to see which is better in preventing strokes and death.
Subjects will be in the research study for up to 3 years (minimum of 1 year). About 700 people will take part in this study at approximately 125 sites throughout the United States.
The study team is recruiting 20 adults with spasticity due to chronic stroke and 20 adults with no neurological injuries for a 4 day study over 1 week. In people with chronic stroke, one of the most common and disabling problems is spasticity (increased muscle tone or muscle stiffness). The purpose of this research study is to examine effects of dry needling on the nervous system (pathways between the muscle, spinal cord, and brain) in people with spasticity due to chronic stroke. Dry needling is a procedure in which a thin, stainless steel needle is inserted into your skin to produce a muscle twitch response. It is intended to release a knot in your muscle and relieve pain.
The total study duration is 4 visits over one week. The first visit will take about 1.5 hours, during which the study team will determine the best electrode placement and create a removeable cast of your arm or leg to aid in placing electrodes in the next visits. The second visit will take about 3 hours, during which dry needling will take place, and the fourth and fifth visits will take about 1.5 hour. During all visits you will be asked to participate in examinations of reflexes (muscle responses to non-invasive nerve stimulation) and arm/leg function.
Following a stroke, many individuals have a high risk of falls, which can negatively influence quality of life. Unfortunately, current treatments have not effectively addressed this problem. This study investigates whether two methods of delivering mechanical perturbations during walking have the potential to improve post-stroke walking balance and reduce real-world fall incidence.