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Nov 24, 2009 10:20 pm US/Central
New Rehab Helps Younger Stroke Patients Recover
GRAPEVINE (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
It can come out of nowhere and change your life in an instant. More North Texas women in their 20s and 30s are now falling victim to strokes. But, there's new hope for young patients as they work to regain their lives.
35-year old Kimberly Rieper remembers what her life used to be like.
"I was a mother, I was going to school full time, and I was working full time," she said. "Very hectic, very very busy."
But now, she's unable to work, and unable to do many of the things she used to. In 2007, the pre-school teacher was visiting family for the Thanksgiving holiday when she suffered a massive stroke.
"I couldn't tell you my name, my social security number, where I was living," she recalled. "I'm going to die. That's what I thought."
She spent a week in the hospital, and then was released but without any form of rehabilitation.
"I had to relearn everything by myself, and with my sister," she said.
Dr. Asher Imam, a neurologist in Southlake, says younger stroke patients like Rieper are being forgotten. While she could walk, her mental capabilities were diminished which is something she says the hospital never checked.
"Unless you're careful and you test them for that cognitive impairment, you may prematurely discharge the patient," Dr. Imam said.
Without cognitive/mental rehabilitation, Dr. Imam says patients have problems returning to their previous lives and even their jobs.
"They have trouble with focus and concentration," he said. "They still have trouble with memory and recall of information."
Baylor hospital in Grapevine is using new techniques to help younger patients recover their mental abilities. Selina Brak is a rehab specialist at Baylor. She says the specialized tasks and mental exercises they use are designed to re-train parts of the brain that were damaged.
"We work a little bit on memory, on thinking, critical thinking," Brak said. "We work on visual scanning, visual information processing."
Each patient's rehab is different and is specifically designed around their exact needs.
"It's how you can approach everyday problems and come up with a solution," Brak said.
She says the patients are seeing better results and are able to get back to normal faster.
"We give them the tools, I think, to be as successful as they possibly can, and not have to have that failure," she said.
Rieper says life will never be completely like it was, but it's pretty close.
"I'm me again," she said. "It took a long time to get to that point, but I feel really good now."
Dr. Imam says he's seeing more young stroke patients than ever. He attributes that to higher stress and blood pressure, and also diet. Common signs of stroke include partial paralysis, severe headache, and vision problems.
Click here to learn more signs of stroke.
Click here to learn about preventative measures.
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