Walking on a treadmill can help stroke survivors improve their mobility and even rewire their brains — years after routine therapy has ended, according to a team of local researchers.
The findings suggest the need to include a long-term exercise program in rehabilitation, researchers said.
“It’s been a blind spot in most stroke physicians’ care for their patients, that they haven’t been encouraging exercise,” said Dr. Dan
Hanley, professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
The research, published last week in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, was conducted at Hopkins, the University of Maryland and the Baltimore VA Medical Center’s Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center.
Most stroke recovery programs end after about a month with the notion that recovery plateaus, Hanley said.
However, researchers guided 71 patients who suffered a stroke at least six months earlier through a program of walking three times a week for up to 40 minutes. After six months, the patients were much fitter and walking faster.
“The ballgame is not over after conventional rehabilitation,” said Dr. Andrew Goldberg of the Baltimore VA.
Investigators also found more activity in the areas of the brain associated with walking, suggesting the exercise improved brain functions. This also means medication targeting those brain areas may boost recovery, Hanley said.
