Understanding Motor Unit And Muscle Alterations For Neurologic Rehabilitation

Neurological injuries (such as hemispheric stroke and spinal cord injury, etc.) can result in muscle weakness and spasticity. The affected muscles often experience progressive changes in their intrinsic mechanical properties, giving rise to muscle contracture and associated alterations in muscle internal structural changes. The mechanisms behind the changes are multifactorial, including disuse, autonomic changes, peripheral neuropathy, a loss of central motor neuron trophic influences, and/or their combinations. Regardless of the origins of weakness and other changes, it is very important to understand or quantify complex neuromuscular changes after a neurological injury.

Some well-known age-related neurological diseases include Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, deafness, and blindness. Even more common are the problems of aging which are not due to disease but to more subtle impairments in neurobiological systems, including impairments in vision, memory loss, muscle weakening, and loss of reproductive functions, changes in body weight, and sleeplessness. As the average age of our society increases, diseases of aging continue to become more common, and conditions associated with aging need more attention by doctors and researchers. In 1991, patients over the age of 65 saw their doctors an average of eight times per year. Research funding is provided by the Neuroscience and Neuropsychology of Aging (NNA) Program, which is run by the National Institute on Aging. This book offers a comprehensive overview of all topics related to functional impairments which are related to the aging brain and nervous system. It is organized according to four general functions: movement, senses, memory, and neuroendocrine regulation. Written by the leading researchers in the field, this comprehensive work addresses both impairments associated with diseases and not associated with diseases, making it easier to understand the mechanisms involved. Functional Neurobiology of Aging is an important reference for professionals and students involved in aging research, as well as physicians who need to recognize and understand age-related impairments. Organized by function, making it easy to find and understand the material Addresses impairments both associated with diseases and not associated with diseases Written by leading researchers in the field Most comprehensive source of information on the neurobiology of aging

Neurological Rehabilitation is the latest volume in the definitive Handbook of Clinical Neurology series. It is the first time that this increasing important subject has been included in the series and this reflects the growing interest and quality of scientific data on topics around neural recovery and the practical applications of new research. The volume will appeal to clinicians from both neurological and rehabilitation backgrounds and contains topics of interest to all members of the multidisciplinary clinical team as well as the neuroscience community. The volume is divided into five key sections. The first is a summary of current research on neural repair, recovery and plasticity. The authors have kept the topics readable for a non-scientific audience and focused on the aspects of basic neuroscience that should be most relevant to clinical practice. The next section covers the basic principles of neurorehabilitation, including excellent chapters on learning and skill acquisition, outcome measurement and functional neuroimaging. The key clinical section comes next and includes updates and reviews on the management of the main neurological disabling physical problems, such as spasticity, pain, sexual functioning and dysphagia. Cognitive, emotional and behavioural problems are just as important and are covered in the next section, with excellent chapters, for example, on memory and management of executive dysfunction. The final part draws the sections on symptom management together by discussing the individual diseases that are most commonly seen in neurorehabilitation and providing an overview of the management of the disability associated with those disorders. The volume is a definitive review of current neurorehabilitation practice and will be valuable to a wide range of clinicians and scientists working in this rapidly developing field. A volume in the Handbook of Clinical Neurology series, which has an unparalleled reputation as the world's most comprehensive source of information in neurology International list of contributors including the leading workers in the field Describes the advances which have occurred in clinical neurology and the neurosciences, their impact on the understanding of neurological disorders and on patient care

Janet Carr and Roberta Shepherd head up a new team of eminent authors for the second edition of this definitive text on neurological physiotherapy. In the first edition, the authors described a model of neurological rehabilitation for individuals with motor dysfunction based on scientific research in the areas of neuromuscular control, biomechanics, motor skill learning, and the link between cognition and action, together with developments in pathology and adaptation. The new edition continues to advance this model while identifying and incorporating the many advances that have occurred in the last decade in the understanding and treatment of adults with neurological conditions, whether caused by accident or disease. Among these advances is the knowledge that the brain retains a plastic potential to reorganize, even in old and/or lesioned brains, and that neural plasticity can be influenced by task-related mental and physical practice in a stimulating environment. There is also an increasing body of knowledge related to the musculoskeletal system’s adaptability and the need to prevent length and stiffness- related changes in muscle contractility, together with loss of aerobic fitness and endurance. There is an expanding body of clinical research that appears to support the model provided here. The training guidelines outlined in Neurological Rehabilitation are based on biomechanical constructs and motor relearning research, applied to enhance brain reorganization and muscle contractility, and encourage functional recovery of the patient. It connects science and clinical practice enabling students and practitioners to develop their knowledge and use new clinical methods based on modern scientific understanding. All chapters have been revised, some with the collaboration of five specialists who are engaged in high level scientific research and clinical practice Biomechanical models are presented to provide a framework for action-specific training and exercise to improve performance Clinical guidelines are science- and evidence-based Emphasis is on new approaches to the delivery of neurological rehabilitation that increase the time spent in mental and physical activity, and the intensity of practice and exercise Up-to-date referencing

neurology A fully updated and authoritative neurology resource The Queen Square Textbook has established itself as a favourite companion to clinical neurosciences training and teaching around the world, whilst retaining its role as an invaluable reference guide for physicians and other healthcare professionals working in neurology, general medicine and related specialties. The book continues to reflect the core values essential to the practice of clinical neurology in the 21st century. The third edition has been extensively revised and updated to take account of the rapid pace of progress in the neurosciences and patient care. Contemporary neurology has been changed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate emergency and the growing inequalities in healthcare resources. The new edition has been extensively revised to reflect these challenges and affords a greater emphasis on management and rehabilitation whilst continuing to reflect the coherence of a text produced from a single, closely-knit, centre of excellence. Highlights of the new edition include: An updated approach to clinical examination, decision-making and diagnosis New developments in neuroimmunology, pathology and genetics Neuropalliative care Ethical and legal issues in clinical neurology The latest developments in the understanding and management of stroke, movement disorders, epilepsy, cognitive impairment, multiple sclerosis, infections, myelopathy, anterior horn cell disease, disorders of nerve and muscle, neuro-oncology, neurological disorders of hearing, balance and vision, and the neurological care of critical illness, sleep, neuropsychiatry, pain, autonomic and urological disorders. An emphasis on treatment and rehabilitation of the person with a neurological disease The new edition marks a significant transition to reflect contemporary neurological practice during uncertain times. It mirrors the enormous changes in investigation, diagnosis and treatment that have occurred in recent years whilst maintaining the underlying principle that we do not treat diagnoses but, rather, we care for people affected by neurological disease.