The outcome of a second stroke: the impact on hemispheric functioning

Abstract

A total of 238 patients admitted to Loewenstein Rehabilitation Hospital (LRH) after a second stroke were included in a preliminary study on the outcome of rehabilitation. The patients were examined for activities of daily living (ADL), locomotion, hand function, elementary cognitive abilities, and communication. The practical goal was to examine the rehabilitation prognosis of patients who suffered brain stroke for a second time. On the theoretical plane, the study aimed to broaden knowledge of the functional relationships between the two cerebral hemispheres from a rehabilitation perspective. A major finding is that recovery from a recurrent stroke is a multifactorial affair. Communication and spatial abilities are directly related to hemispheric specialization, whereas locomotion and hand functioning are rather organismic functions.

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