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Medicina
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Recent Advances in Neurorehabilitation: From Brain Injury to Autonomic and...
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Recent Advances in Neurorehabilitation: From Brain Injury to Autonomic and Pelvic Dysfunction

A special issue of Medicina (ISSN 1648-9144). This special issue belongs to the section "Neurology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 193

Editor

Dr. Gianfranco Lamberti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
2. Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Piacenza Hospital (PC), Piacenza, Italy
Interests: rehabilitation; neurorehabilitation; stroke rehabilitation; physical rehabilitation; brain injury; neurogenic lower urinary tract; bowel dysfunction; sexual dysfunction; pelvic floor rehabilitation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Neurorehabilitation is a rapidly evolving field addressing the complex motor, cognitive, and autonomic consequences of neurological disorders. While motor recovery has traditionally been the primary focus, increasing attention is now being directed toward non-motor dysfunctions, including neurogenic lower urinary tract and bowel disorders, sexual dysfunction, and pelvic floor impairment.

This Special Issue aims to explore recent advances in rehabilitation strategies following stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and other neurological conditions, with particular emphasis on integrated and multidisciplinary approaches. Topics of interest include innovative assessment tools, neurophysiological mechanisms, pelvic floor rehabilitation in neurorehabilitation settings, and management of autonomic dysfunctions impacting quality of life.

By bridging motor and autonomic rehabilitation, this collection seeks to promote a more comprehensive model of functional recovery and long-term patient-centered care.

Dr. Gianfranco Lamberti
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Medicina is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • neurorehabilitation
  • stroke and brain injury rehabilitation
  • spinal cord injury
  • neurogenic lower urinary tract and bowel dysfunction
  • pelvic floor rehabilitation
  • sexual dysfunction in neurological disorders
  • autonomic dysfunction in neurological disease

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

18 pages, 850 KB  
Article
Ankle Robotics Induces Ongoing Locomotor Plasticity with Delayed, Sustained Multi-Segmental Gait Improvements 17 Months After Training in Chronic Stroke
by Anindo Roy, Kelly Westlake, Charlene Hafer-Macko, Bradley Hennessie and Richard Macko
Medicina 2026, 62(7), 1250; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina62071250 (registering DOI) - 29 Jun 2026
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Robotics training improves gait after stroke, but no prior studies have investigated whether emerging long-term gait biomechanics improvements occur after training. We assessed the temporal profile of pre-post gait biomechanics changes after 9 weeks of dorsiflexion specific adaptive control [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Robotics training improves gait after stroke, but no prior studies have investigated whether emerging long-term gait biomechanics improvements occur after training. We assessed the temporal profile of pre-post gait biomechanics changes after 9 weeks of dorsiflexion specific adaptive control ankle robot (AMBLE™) training, and at 9 weeks post-training and 17 months later in three persons with chronic stroke to probe for ongoing locomotor plasticity versus post-training disuse decay. Materials and Methods: Three densely hemiparetic subjects (mean ± SD), age 62 ± 7 years., stroke latency 8 ± 4 years, available for repeat testing from an original N = 24 robotics training cohort study, underwent three-dimensional gait analyses pre-post 9 weeks of AMBLE training, and then 9 weeks and 17 months after all robotics training ended. Results: We found that only 47% of total improvements in heel-first strikes and 31% increased paretic step length occurred pre-post training. Unexpectedly, all other biomechanical improvements manifested progressively 17 months after training ended, including ankle peak swing angle (∆ = 7°), dorsiflexion angular velocity (∆ = 23°/s), peak knee flexion (∆ = 11.1°) and hip flexion (∆ = 6°). Robotics prescription progressions in level of assistance and dorsiflexion target angle strongly correlated to gait biomechanical outcomes at 17 months, including improved heel-first strikes and peak dorsiflexion swing angle in this small sample. Conclusions: These findings show that initial improvements in foot–ankle function across training are followed by emergent biomechanical improvements in ankle, knee and hip kinematics across 17 months post-training, with delayed outcomes related to robotics prescription progression. The temporal profile of biomechanical adaptations might suggest delayed, progressive reduction in pathological multi-joint synergies of the hemiparetic leg. However, findings are exploratory and cannot establish causality, treatment efficacy or broad generalizability. Future research is needed to determine whether ankle robotics training can catalyze improvements in long-term gait biomechanical safety and efficiency in the chronic disease management of stroke. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Neurorehabilitation: From Brain Injury to Autonomic and Pelvic Dysfunction)
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