Home-Based Training to Reduce Upper Limb Functional Impairment Post-Stroke

  • 7,689

    Total downloads

  • 30k

    Total views and downloads

Submit your idea

You will be redirected to our submission process.

Submit your manuscript summarySubmit your manuscript

About this Research Topic

Submission closed

Background

Fifteen million people in the world each year have a stroke, with 85% of survivors losing upper limb function, unable to do everyday tasks, such as using a knife and fork, unscrewing tops off jars, or doing up buttons. Six months later, 60% of severely impaired and 30% of moderately impaired survivors are still unable to perform many activities of daily life, work, and leisure unassisted. This lack of use can persist for years and adversely affect the survivor’s quality of life and participation. Stroke survivors themselves cite insufficient upper limb recovery as one of the major barriers to achieving a good quality of life after stroke.

The majority of survivors are discharged to their usual residence. Current community rehabilitation for the upper limb after stroke is therapist-led, with most of the therapy being in-person treatment from the therapist, with supplementary practice by the survivor. The costs of providing in-person treatment means the period of rehabilitation is relatively short. For example, in Australia, people receive approximately 6 weeks of inpatient therapy, then an additional outpatient or day hospital rehabilitation or home-based community rehabilitation for a further approximate 6 weeks, at which time therapy ceases.

It is not surprising that many people do not recover good arm and hand function, as recovery occurs through neuroplasticity, which requires thousands of repetitions of movements to create the neural pathways underlying learned movements. Neuroplasticity takes time, extending long after the initial 12-weeks into several years after stroke. Health systems are unlikely to ever provide this longer period of therapy. Therefore, there is a pressing need to focus on how rehabilitation can best be managed at home beyond 12-weeks. An overall aim is for practice to persist for the months and years following stroke, until the person feels they have reached their maximum potential.

This Research Topic aims to explore solutions and ideas about how to organize and enable upper limb home-based training. We welcome articles describing effectiveness of therapeutic interventions and the evaluation of new techniques and methods, as well as high quality discussion, theoretical, and point of view articles. Contributions that explore, innovate, and evaluate the best ways to self-manage continued upper limb practice at home, for example using co-design with stroke survivors, are welcomed. Articles exploring the following example aspects of therapy at home to reduce upper limb functional impairment could be included:

1) how therapy is managed in the home or how it could be delivered;

2) scheduling of training and practice, and the amount required;

3) who delivers or supervises the therapy (e.g., combinations of therapists, therapy assistants, exercise physiologists, personal trainers);

4) blending of home therapy with therapy at other locations, such as outpatient hospital departments or community locations including gymnasiums.

We encourage authors to contact us with related suggestions not listed here.

Articles exploring the wider issues that influence practice and recovery of upper limb, are also of interest, such as:

5) The patient experience and self-efficacy.

6) Brain recovery and neuroplasticity that relate to upper limb recovery at home.

7) Robotic, virtual reality, and gaming devices that can be used at home to enhance upper limb recovery.

Topic Editor, Paulette van Vliet, is the owner of Central Coast Neuro Rehab. The other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regard to the Research Topic subject.

Keywords: Stroke, Self-efficacy, Rehabilitation, Upper Limb, Home Program

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Topic editors

Frequently asked questions

  • Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

    Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

  • The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

    Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

  • As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

    A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

  • Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

    In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

  • Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

    As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

    Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

     

  • Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

    Check available article types here 

  • Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

    Suggest your topic here 

  • A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

    The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

  • As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

     

    You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

  • As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

  • If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

  • Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

  • Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

  • As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

    Find out more about our Research Topics

  • Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

    Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

  • In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.

     

Impact

  • 30kTopic views
  • 21kArticle views
  • 7,689Article downloads
View impact