If your loved one struggles with cognition after a traumatic brain injury (TBI), stroke, or another event, cognitive therapy may help them make significant advances. There is research to suggest physiotherapy exercises can greatly improve outcomes for many who complete them as a part of cognitive rehabilitation.
At the Naples Community Injury Center, our neurosurgeon, medical doctors, chiropractic doctors, physical therapists, and other team members develop individualized plans for every patient. Contact us today to learn more about our cognitive rehabilitation programs. We are now accepting new patients to help improve their quality of life.
Table of Contents
How Can Therapy Help Address Cognitive Concerns?
Many people struggle with cognitive dysfunction following a head injury, stroke, or another brain injury. Cognition plays a key role in daily life, and related concerns can affect almost all high-level functions of the brain.
Those with impaired cognitive abilities could find it difficult to:
- Focus on a task
- Concentrate when necessary
- Access long-term memory
- Make new short-term memories
- Make good decisions or use good judgment
- Apply logic and reason
- Plan ahead, even for simple daily activities
- Use language appropriately
- Comprehend new concepts
- Complete any task requiring visuospatial functioning
While medical professionals have long used physical therapy to directly address specific loss of muscle control and strength issues, many now prescribe physiotherapy for patients with cognitive losses regardless of whether there are specific needs.
They find that gaining strength and flexibility benefits the patient both physically and cognitively. This is especially true when used in conjunction with specific exercises to address concerns such as speech and language, balance concerns, sleep hygiene, and more.
How Our Cognitive Rehabilitation Program Works to Help Patients
Like many of our therapy and rehabilitation programs at Naples Community Injury Center, our cognitive rehabilitation program centers on physiotherapy. Many neurologists and others who see patients with cognitive concerns refer their patients for physical therapy. This is common for patients following a stroke, dementia diagnosis, or TBI.
Many of our patients have movement limitations, cannot safely exercise on their own, or have one or more weakened limbs. However, some do not have any significant physical concerns. Instead, we use physiotherapy, balance therapy, language therapy, and other forms of therapy as part of a comprehensive cognitive rehabilitation program.
The team meets each new patient during their initial intake exam. During this appointment, our staff runs tests, takes a health history, and establishes baseline measurements to monitor progress. We also determine the patient’s needs during this appointment. This comprehensive evaluation directly feeds into our development of their individualized care plan and treatment options. Cognition rehabilitation therapy could begin the same day.
We Want to Help Your Loved One Heal
Our team includes medical doctors, a neurosurgeon, chiropractic physicians, physician assistants, and chiropractic physician assistants. Together, we have over 60 years of combined experience assessing patients, developing care plans, and helping them reach their goals.
We want to help our patients heal or learn to manage their injuries and symptoms. When possible, we pursue the maximum improvement possible for patients with cognitive concerns or lasting impairments. Our goals are recovery, increased abilities, and the prevention of future injuries. When possible, we want our patients to leave our care stronger than they were before their injuries occurred.
Our team knows how to address many causes of cognitive impairment. Our clients come to us with a wide range of symptoms and stories behind their brain injuries. Some of the most common causes include:
- Car accident injuries
- Slip and fall injuries
- Work-related injuries
- Sports and recreation injuries
- Boat and pool injuries
- Strokes
- Dementia
If your loved one suffered injuries or received a diagnosis that has caused cognitive decline or impairment, our team understands how difficult and challenging it can be. We want to help you get them the therapies and rehabilitation they need. Contact us today to learn more.
Treatments We Prescribe for Cognitive Rehabilitation
Our team develops a unique set of exercises for each patient. We use several techniques to help them reach their goals and improve cognition, balance, speech, and other key factors that could allow them to lead a more normal life—and return to the activities they loved before their injury.
While each plan is personalized for the individual, some of the techniques we might use in addition to resistance training and general physical therapy include:
Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT)
CIMT aims to strengthen and retrain affected limbs by limiting the patient’s ability to rely on their stronger side during repetitive movements and exercises. This works by restraining the stronger limb, allowing the weakened side to be dominant. The exercises prescribed and the tools used depend on the individual’s abilities.
Weight-Supported Treadmill Training
We use a harness system to carry some of the weight and hold patients upright while they walk or run on our weight-supported treadmills. This has several benefits. It not only allows those with lower limb and pelvic injuries to return to activity sooner, but it also helps rebuild lower body strength, balance, and proper gait.
Constraint-Induced Language Therapy
Our team can assess a patient’s language issues and prescribe exercises that address them. Constraint-induced language therapy could help patients improve speech, swallowing, and eating by retraining breath control and mouth movement.
Vestibular and/or Oculomotor Rehabilitation
Patients with brain injuries following a TBI or stroke often struggle with balance and coordination concerns. Balance therapy, also called vestibular and/or oculomotor rehabilitation, can address several common causes of dizziness and lack of coordination. We prescribe specific exercises meant to address the primary cause of their imbalance.
Complementary Therapies
In addition to prescribing physiotherapy exercises, our team also uses a wide range of complementary therapies that could help speed healing, increase blood flow, address pain, and help patients relax. This could include massage, infrared light treatment, ultrasound therapy, and electrical stimulation (ES).
Call us Today to Learn More
The Naples Community Injury Center is now accepting new patients for cognitive therapy and our cognitive rehabilitation program. We can answer your questions about our doctors and therapies or schedule your loved one’s initial intake exam today.
Contact us now at (239) 631-5445 to get started.
