Spinal cord injuries should be treated with mind rehabilitation in patients for a better outcome in treatment, study says.
Rehabilitating the mind along with the body matters more in spinal cord injury patients says a study. Researchers from Heriot-Watt University claims that the rate of recovery can be increased in individuals with paraplegia who are unable to move the lower half of the body by training them about spatial awareness.
‘Researchers suggests a combined therapy of mental and physical rehabilitation for the individual’s with paraplegia for better treatment outcome.’
The knowledge of the individual’s reach and the space around them changes after the injury even though the individual’s upper limb were unaffected. This change can affect individual’s daily tasks of self-care, says Anna Sedda, assistant professor of psychology.The team of researcher believes that this research can help many health care systems understand their need and support individuals with paraplegia.
The author of the study explained that 25 percent of those with spinal cord lesions retained sensory function but failed to retain their lower limbs. This made the researchers study further about the mental state of the patients.
By combining mind and physical rehabilitation, researchers believe in improving the outcome for the individuals with paraplegia to regain movement in their lower limb.
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