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Medicina
Special Issues
Advances and Challenges in Stroke Rehabilitation
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Advances and Challenges in Stroke Rehabilitation

A special issue of Medicina (ISSN 1648-9144).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 May 2025) | Viewed by 2090

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Trinidad Sentandreu-Mañó

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Guest Editor
Department of Physiotherapy, Advanced Research Methods Applied to Quality of Life Promotion, University of Valencia, 46010 Valencia, Spain
Interests: neurorehabilitation; quality of life; aging; frailty
Prof. Dr. José Manuel Tomás Miguel

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Methodology for the Behavioral Sciences, Advanced Research Methods Applied to Quality of Life Promotion, University of Valencia, 46010 Valencia, Spain
Interests: multivariate statistics; measurement in social and health sciences; structural equation modeling; longitudinal analyses; successful aging; bio-psycho-social factors in aging
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, significant advancements have been made in stroke rehabilitation. However, despite these developments, numerous challenges remain, making it crucial to continue exploring innovative solutions and addressing the existing barriers in stroke recovery from a biopsychosocial perspective.

This Special Issue aims to explore both cutting-edge innovations and persistent challenges in stroke rehabilitation. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of the field, highlighting not only the latest therapeutic approaches but also the obstacles that must still be addressed to improve patient outcomes.

We welcome contributions that explore diverse aspects of stroke rehabilitation, including novel techniques grounded in neuroplasticity, the optimization of existing protocols, the integration of personalized medicine and AI-driven rehabilitation strategies, the role of telemedicine in enhancing accessibility and outcomes, and the development of new assessment tools to more effectively monitor patient progress and therapy effectiveness.

Additionally, this Special Issue seeks to highlight the ongoing challenges in stroke rehabilitation, including disparities in access to care, the need for long-term support systems, and the impact on both patients and caregivers. We are particularly interested in contributions that adopt a biopsychosocial approach, which consider the interaction of biological, psychological, and social factors in the recovery process. Submissions that propose solutions to current barriers, address the limitations of existing rehabilitation protocols, consider socioeconomic factors influencing recovery, and develop more accurate and reliable evaluation methods are highly encouraged. Through this collection of articles, we aim to provide valuable insights that will advance the field of stroke rehabilitation by offering updated information and new perspectives for clinical practice.

Dr. Trinidad Sentandreu-Mañó
Prof. Dr. José Manuel Tomás Miguel
Guest Editors

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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-blind 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

  • stroke rehabilitation
  • neuroplasticity
  • therapeutic strategies
  • biopsychosocial approach
  • personalized medicine
  • AI-driven strategies
  • telemedicine
  • assessment measures
  • long-term support
  • healthcare disparities

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 341 KiB  
Article
Dance and Somatic-Informed Movement in an Acute Inpatient Stroke Unit
by Lucie Beaudry, Céline Odier and Sylvie Fortin
Medicina 2025, 61(6), 966; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61060966 - 23 May 2025
Viewed by 1220
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Stroke units rely on interdisciplinary teams. Professionals with complementary alternative practices may join the team since such approaches are increasingly supporting the stroke recovery process. The aim of this study was to develop a better understanding of how a [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Stroke units rely on interdisciplinary teams. Professionals with complementary alternative practices may join the team since such approaches are increasingly supporting the stroke recovery process. The aim of this study was to develop a better understanding of how a dance and somatic-informed movement intervention could be utilized in an inpatient setting as an adjunct to post-stroke therapy. We sought to identify (1) what knowledge we could draw on to develop the content and pedagogy for the intervention, (2) what helped/hindered the intervention aimed at functional recovery, as perceived by the practitioner-researchers, and (3) the relationships experienced with the various stakeholders. Materials and Methods: This exploratory qualitative study used the enhanced critical incident technique to collect retrospective self-report data from two practitioner-researchers engaged in delivering the intervention over two months. The data underwent thematic analysis. Patients (n = 6) in a stroke unit were selected within ≤72 h of hospital admission. The intervention was conducted four to six times a week until the vascular neurologist (co-researcher) authorized their transfer to a rehabilitation hospital. Results: The intervention evolved from crafting content and pedagogy at the intersection of different areas of knowledge (dance, somatics, neuroscience, and stroke). It was based on active, assisted, and passive movements. Verbal, tactile, visual, and imaginary inputs used to enhance body awareness were perceived as potentially helping patients recover some range of motion, quality of movements, and voluntary movement control, and fostering calmness and motivation. The intervention was well received by stakeholders. Conclusions: Dance and somatic-informed movement can be a complementary therapy in stroke units, although it requires a delicate juggling of time allocation within the interdisciplinary team. Further studies should be conducted with a larger number of patients and different practitioners. Collaboration between qualitative and quantitative researchers is needed to make a robust case for such interventions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Challenges in Stroke Rehabilitation)
15 pages, 678 KiB  
Article
Measuring Quality of Life in Stroke Survivors: Validity and Reliability of the Spanish COOP/WONCA Scale
by Trinidad Sentandreu-Mañó, Adrián García-Mollá, Inmaculada Oltra Ferrús, José M. Tomás and José Ricardo Salom Terrádez
Medicina 2025, 61(5), 878; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61050878 - 12 May 2025
Viewed by 381
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Strokes significantly impact patients’ quality of life (QoL), affecting physical, cognitive, and social functioning. While health-related quality of life (HRQoL) assessments are essential for patient-centered care and clinical decision-making, many existing tools are limited by cultural biases or practical [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Strokes significantly impact patients’ quality of life (QoL), affecting physical, cognitive, and social functioning. While health-related quality of life (HRQoL) assessments are essential for patient-centered care and clinical decision-making, many existing tools are limited by cultural biases or practical constraints. The COOP/WONCA charts offer a simple, brief, and validated alternative for functional assessment, yet their psychometric properties in stroke survivors remain underexplored. This study aims to evaluate the validity and reliability of the COOP/WONCA charts in assessing HRQoL among Spanish stroke survivors. Materials and Methods: Structural validity, reliability, and criterion-related validity were studied for COOP/WONCA charts in a sample of 91 stroke survivors, where 39.6% were women and 60.4% were men. Their ages ranged from 44 to 93 years old (M  =  68.84; SD = 9.44). A total of 70% of the strokes had an ischemic origin and 30% were hemorrhagic. To assess dimensionality, three Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) were performed, differentiated by the inclusion of charts. Results: The CFA corroborate the best fitting of single-factor structure six-charts version (χ2 (9) = 8.69, p = 0.465, RMSEA = 0.000, 90% CI [0.000–0.141], CFI = 0.999, SRMR = 0.048). The results of criterion-related validity indicated significant correlation between dimensions of SF-36 and sociodemographic, clinical and physical variables. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.95 for the 9 domains version and 0.93 for the 6 domains version. Conclusions: These findings support that the COOP/WONCA Spanish version is a reliable and valid scale for assessing health-related quality of life among stroke survivors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Challenges in Stroke Rehabilitation)
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