Articles
Every piece traces to a named source. Year 1 covers stroke.
Clinical reasoning frameworks for stroke PT
1. Case. A 65-year-old man, 8 weeks post-stroke. New referral to outpatient PT. Walks with a quad cane, comfortable gait speed 0.51 m/s, FGA 13/30. He says, "I want to walk my granddaughter to school."—
Outcome measurement: when to use Berg, mini-BESTest, 6MWT, 10MWT, FGA, STREAM
1. Case. Three hypothetical patients arrive on the same day. (A) Day 4 post-stroke, sitting unsupported, not yet ambulating. (B) Day 30 post-stroke, ambulates with a quad cane and contact-guard assist 25 m. (C) Day—
CIMT, mirror therapy, FES: what the evidence supports and what it does not
1. Case. A 52-year-old woman, 5 months post-stroke. Right UE: active wrist extension 15°, finger extension 12° at the MCPs. FMA-UE 38/66. She uses the right arm intermittently for stabilization, rarely for primary task. 2.—
Post-stroke pain, fatigue, and depression: PT scope and the team
1. Case. A 60-year-old man, 4 months post-stroke. Right shoulder pain at rest 4/10, with movement 7/10. He naps twice daily and says, "I feel like I'm not myself." PHQ-9 = 11. 2. CPG section.—
Hemineglect and sensory deficits
1. Case. A 67-year-old right-handed woman, 3 weeks post-large right-MCA stroke. Left hemiparesis. She does not eat food on the left side of her tray, bumps her left shoulder on doorframes, and shaves only the—
Spasticity: assessment and conservative PT management
1. Case. A 58-year-old woman, 7 months post-stroke. Right elbow flexor Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) 2, wrist flexors MAS 1+. She reports difficulty with hygiene under the elbow and donning sleeves. She is followed by—
Balance and fall prevention post-stroke
1. Case. A 70-year-old man, 5 months post-stroke. Two falls in the past month, both indoors, both turning. Berg 41/56. FGA 14/30. He uses a cane outdoors only. 2. CPG section. AHA/ASA 2016 recommends balance—
Gait: high-intensity, task-specific, measured
1. Case. A 64-year-old woman, 9 months post-stroke. Comfortable gait speed 0.45 m/s with quad cane. Berg 38/56. She wants to walk her dog in the neighborhood without holding her husband's arm. 2. CPG section.—
Motor recovery: upper extremity, lower extremity, trunk
1. Case. A 55-year-old man, 6 weeks post-left-MCA stroke. Right UE: FMA-UE 22/66, can lift the arm against gravity through partial range, no functional grasp. Right LE: FMA-LE 18/34, ambulates 10 m with a single-point—
Chronic stroke: the 6-month-plus patient and the plateau myth
1. Case. A 71-year-old woman, 14 months post-right-MCA stroke. Left hemiparesis. Comfortable gait speed 0.55 m/s with AFO and single-point cane. Previous PT episode discharged her 6 months ago at "plateau." 2. CPG section. The—
Outpatient and community-based stroke rehab: the dosage cliff
1. Case. A 62-year-old man, four months post-left-MCA stroke. Comfortable gait speed 0.62 m/s, 6MWT 220 m, single-point cane. Goal: return to coaching his daughter's soccer team — standing, walking sidelines, intermittent jogging. 2. CPG—
Subacute and inpatient rehab: dose, intensity, and the plasticity window
1. Case. A 57-year-old man with a right pontine infarct arrives at the inpatient rehabilitation facility on day 8. Left hemiparesis. He can sit unsupported, transfers with moderate assist of one, and ambulates 15 m—