(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Walking on a treadmill isn’t just for people
wanting to slim down; it’s also helping stroke victims regain mobility years
after a stroke.
In a multi-institutional study spanning more than six months, researchers found
patients who exercised on a treadmill three days a week for up to 40 minutes
showed significant physical improvement over those who just performed stretching
exercises. Walking speed in the treadmill group increased 51 percent compared to
about 11 percent for those in the stretching group. Ground walking speed also
increased among treadmill users by 19 percent. Researchers also found treadmill
users were more physically fit at study completion, while those in the
stretching group actually decreased in their physical fitness (based on
patient’s VO2 peak -- a measure of cardiac fitness).
Study authors say these findings suggest patients’ brains may retain the
capacity to rewire through a treadmill exercise program months or years after
conventional physical therapy has ended.
“Many stroke survivors believe there’s nothing to be gained from further
rehabilitation, but our results suggest that health and functional benefits from
walking on a treadmill can occur even decades out from stroke,” Richard F. Macko,
M.D., a professor of neurology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine
in Baltimore, was quoted as saying.
SOURCE: Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, 2008
