Pioneering Technology:
“Nessie” Helps Restore Use of Hand Following Stroke

 
Looking back, 66-year-old Audrey Goldman thinks maybe there were a few warning signs before her April 2004 stroke.

“A few days prior to my stroke I was visiting my daughter in Northern California and I got a really bad headache,” Goldman said. “I took some pain reliever and it seemed to subside so I didn’t give it a second thought.”

 
Likewise, when her fingertips felt numb the night before her stroke, Goldman thought she had leaned on her arm too long and her hand had fallen asleep.

“I didn’t realize I was even at risk for a stroke,” Goldman said. “My cholesterol was somewhat high, and I was definitely overweight, but I walked every day and was very active.”

On the morning of April 20, 2004, Goldman’s whole world changed.

“My husband got up early for his morning bike ride and he noticed that my face was twisted and I was having trouble speaking,” Goldman said. “He said, ‘You’re having a stroke,’ and called the paramedics right away.”

After a week in the Intensive Care Unit, Goldman spent the next six weeks re-learning how to walk and get in and out of bed at the Rehabcentre, Little Company of Mary – San Pedro Hospital’s acute rehabilitation center.

“I’ve never experienced anything like the intensive work I did at the Rehabcentre,” Goldman said. “But the relationships I formed there were very strong. Along with the hard work there were lots of hugs, lots of affection and wonderful emotional support.”

Through a rigorous program of neurological reeducation, Goldman recovered her mobility rather quickly. Her hand and arm have been slower to recover, which is typical. Another challenge for Goldman and many people who suffer a stroke is “tone.” Tone is the tendency for an extremity to turn inward toward the body, with joints in a flexed position. In Goldman’s case, her left hand had high tone, especially her thumb.   Continue »

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