Functional Recovery and Serum Angiogenin Changes According to Intensity of Rehabilitation Therapy After Stroke.

Rehabilitation is still the only treatment available to improve functional status after the acute phase of stroke. Most clinical guidelines highlight the need to design rehabilitation treatments considering starting time, intensity, and frequency, according to the tolerance of the patient. However, there are no homogeneous protocols and the biological effects are under investigation.

Importance of Angiogenin and Endothelial Progenitor Cells After Rehabilitation Both in Ischemic Stroke Patients and in a Mouse Model of Cerebral Ischemia.

Rehabilitation therapy is the only available treatment for stroke survivors presenting neurological deficits; however, the underlying molecules and mechanisms associated with functional/motor improvement during rehabilitation are poorly understood. Our aim is to study the modulation of angiogenin and endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) as repair-associated factors in a cohort of stroke patients and mouse models of rehabilitation after cerebral ischemia. The clinical study included 18 ischemic strokes admitted to an intensive rehabilitation therapy (IRT) unit, 18 non-ischemic controls and brain samples from three deceased patients.

Plasma Matrix Metalloproteinases in Patients With Stroke During Intensive Rehabilitation Therapy.

Objective: To study plasma levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) as potential markers of recovery during intensive rehabilitation therapy (IRT) after stroke.

Design: Prospective and descriptive 3-month follow-up study.

Setting: Rehabilitation unit and research center.