https://medicalxpress.com/physiatry-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Physiatry New research by the University of Limerick in Ireland has found that collaborative sessions combining music therapy with speech and language therapy can support meaningful communication gains in young children recovering from acquired brain injuries. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-music-speech-therapy-combined-children.html Tue, 16 Jun 2026 13:40:06 EDT news700834802 A new study demonstrates that a person with severe paralysis caused by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) can use a brain-computer interface (BCI) at home to communicate, work and interact with the digital world—without the need for researcher support. Published in Nature Medicine, the results mark a significant step toward delivering practical assistive technology for people with severe speech and motor impairments. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-brain-interface-enables-independent-accurate.html Mon, 15 Jun 2026 15:00:07 EDT news700747147 Daniel Daneshvar, MD, Ph.D., director of the HealthSpan Lab and Chief of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Mass General Brigham, and Charlotte Luster, of the HealthSpan Lab, are the senior and lead authors of a paper published in Neuroepidemiology, "Brain Cancer Mortality following Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): A TBI Model Systems Study." https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-people-traumatic-brain-injury-die.html Wed, 10 Jun 2026 22:20:01 EDT news700315158 Fewer than one in four people with stroke and fewer than one in seven people with traumatic brain injury receive inpatient rehabilitation care after being hospitalized, according to a study published in Neurology Open Access. Researchers found disparities in access across sex, race, insurance coverage and income level. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-patients-brain-injury-inpatient-rehab.html Wed, 10 Jun 2026 16:00:06 EDT news700241401 A customized throw-back video game may offer a surprisingly futuristic path to stroke recovery. In a new study, Northwestern University scientists developed a 90s-style video game to help chronic stroke survivors regain lost arm function. While wearing a small device on their impaired arm and using a laptop computer, players use their arm muscles to complete tasks such as flying a helicopter around the screen to hit a moving target. The muscle retraining helps separate the brain's uncoordinated movement signals, enabling muscles to work independently again. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-video-game-rehab-arm-movement.html Tue, 09 Jun 2026 09:00:03 EDT news700214221 Muscle spasticity is a common and often debilitating consequence of spinal cord injury that can significantly affect mobility and quality of life. Spasticity is a condition in which muscles become abnormally stiff or tight because of disrupted nerve signaling, often causing exaggerated reflexes, involuntary muscle spasms, and difficulty with movement. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-gene-therapy-approach-muscle-spasticity.html Tue, 09 Jun 2026 08:40:01 EDT news700203961 Researchers at Kanazawa University and the Japanese Stroke & Physical Activity Multiple Center Research Team have identified distinct sedentary behavior patterns among patients with stroke undergoing inpatient rehabilitation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-patients-sedentary-profiles-inpatient-rehab.html Sat, 06 Jun 2026 09:30:01 EDT news699872936 Cerebral palsy is the most common disability that starts in childhood, affecting about 50 million people worldwide. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-exoskeletons-people-cerebral-palsy-reality.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:20:06 EDT news699797523 University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers report the final outcomes of a pioneering pilot clinical trial using electrical stimulation of the spinal cord to improve arm and hand mobility in people with chronic stroke in Nature Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-years-spinal-cord-arm-function.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 05:00:01 EDT news699698402 New paper-thin piezoelectric patch sensors designed for at-home stroke rehabilitation may soon revolutionize post-stroke care by offering potential accessible, efficient rehabilitation and improving patient outcomes through self-motivated health care and entertainment. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-sensors-rehab-screen-game.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 17:40:06 EDT news699631981 For the roughly 300,000 Americans living with a spinal cord injury (SCI), chronic pain is often a part of daily life, and—for many—opioids are prescribed to combat it. In addition to the serious physical considerations, mental health concerns are prevalent in this population. Depression is common among individuals with SCIs, whose risk is three times higher than that of the general population. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-complex-relationship-opioids-suicidal-ideation.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 16:10:06 EDT news699633661 A team of Rice University mechanical and electrical engineering students has developed an interactive, modular rehabilitation system designed to make stroke recovery more engaging, adaptable and effective for patients at home. The project, called TacTile, was created in Rice's Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen (OEDK) and earned top honors at the HUFF OEDK Engineering Design Showcase, where it won first place in the Willy Revolution Award for Outstanding Innovation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-students-rehab-interactive-gameplay.html Mon, 01 Jun 2026 18:20:01 EDT news699540781 More than half of those who are homeless have suffered a brain injury at some point in their lives, whether it be a traumatic brain injury (TBI) such as a blow to the head or concussion, a stroke, a brain tumor or an alcohol-related injury. And that injury most likely occurred before the person became homeless, not as a result of living on the street. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-hidden-link-brain-injuries-homelessness.html Thu, 28 May 2026 20:00:01 EDT news699183658 The vagus nerve connects the brain to major organs throughout the body and plays important roles in many bodily functions. For people with mobility issues participating in physical therapy, stimulating the vagus nerve with a noninvasive technique—transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS)—is emerging as an additional treatment intervention. But researchers have not assessed how taVNS interacts with motor systems during movement, which could inform treatment strategies for those with mobility issues. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-vagus-nerve-treatment-movement.html Mon, 25 May 2026 13:00:02 EDT news698671322 Electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, such as following a spinal cord injury, has made great strides in recent years. However, high-frequency stimulation pulses, which are used in many current applications, appear less efficient at activating those nerve fibers that are believed to contribute decisively to therapeutic effects. This is the conclusion of a study conducted by an international team with the participation of Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-spinal-reveal-high-frequency-pulses.html Thu, 21 May 2026 19:00:02 EDT news698593321 A lightweight robotic device that facilitates neuromuscular recovery in children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), helping them to stand unassisted, is published in Nature this week. Improved function persists after discontinuing training, demonstrating the potential for enduring recovery. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-wearable-knee-robot-children-muscle.html Thu, 21 May 2026 14:40:04 EDT news698581801 Competing in esports, also known as electronic sports, can mean training for several hours a day in front of a screen. Whether people participate in video game competitions at the professional or amateur level, they face physical and cognitive demands. Jane Konidis, M.D., a physiatrist and director of Gaming and Esports Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, shares tips to protect your health, whether you're using a video game console, computer, or smartphone for esports activities. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-health-esports-circuit-competitive-video.html Thu, 21 May 2026 12:20:06 EDT news698582641 A UK-wide trial, managed by Warwick Medical School, finds that online rehabilitation at home can meaningfully improve quality of life for some intensive care survivors. The iRehab Trial tested an online rehabilitation program for people recovering at home after being on a ventilator in intensive care. The trial was conducted across 52 NHS hospitals and managed by Warwick Clinical Trials Unit, with leadership from Ulster University and Queen's University Belfast. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-clinical-trial-online-home-recovery.html Tue, 19 May 2026 16:40:08 EDT news698421122 Researchers have proposed new standards into the decades-old prosthetic donations market, improving the quality of lower limb prosthetic feet by two-thirds—a major quality of life boost for recipients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-prosthetic-feet-curb-medical-equipment.html Wed, 13 May 2026 14:00:03 EDT news697886281 Spinal cord injury (SCI) remains one of the most devastating neurological conditions, severing communication between the brain and the body and leaving millions worldwide with permanent paralysis. Despite decades of research, restoring movement after spinal cord injury has remained one of neuroscience's most intractable problems. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-reconnecting-body-brain-europe-breakthrough.html Mon, 11 May 2026 19:20:04 EDT news697737061 It's tough to avoid the current hype about the health benefits of injecting peptides. Although these substances—essentially, synthetic bits of protein in solution—have long made the rounds in the fitness world, their popularity has exploded. Social media influencers, podcasters, wellness clinics and online sellers promote peptides as a quick and easy way to build muscle faster, heal injuries more quickly, reduce inflammation, lose fat, sleep better and more. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-peptide-people-recover-injuries.html Thu, 07 May 2026 12:20:02 EDT news697374061 A first-of-its-kind study by the National Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) has demonstrated how specialist inpatient rehabilitation can result in significant and lasting improvements for functional neurological disorder (FND) patients. The research is published in the journal Advances in Rehabilitation Science and Practice. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-specialist-inpatient-neurorehabilitation-positive-impact.html Wed, 06 May 2026 18:00:03 EDT news697303682 A large, two-year study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine and consisting of more than 1,400 adults living with chronic pain across the United States found that people who struggle to identify and describe their emotions experience greater disruption to daily life from pain over time due to increased psychological distress. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-emotion-recognition-issues-linked-chronic.html Tue, 28 Apr 2026 14:00:06 EDT news696599761 Most war amputees experience steady improvements in pain, psychological symptoms and quality of life over time, according to a new study that followed 156 Ukrainian amputees for one year and was led by Northwestern Medicine and collaborators in Ukraine. The findings are published in the journal eClinicalMedicine. The study is the first to track over time how anxiety, depression and quality of life interact with pain in an amputee population. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-ukraine-war-amputees-pain-trauma.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:30:01 EDT news695979875 A sequential, multiple assignment, randomized trial (SMART) found that people with chronic low back pain experienced slight improvement in daily function when starting treatment with physical therapy compared with cognitive behavioral therapy. While long-term pain relief was similar across different treatment approaches, small differences between the groups support physical therapy as a first-line treatment strategy consistent with practice guidelines for chronic low back pain. The study is published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-physical-therapy-modest-chronic-pain.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 07:40:01 EDT news695973902 Restoring both walking and sensation to patients with paraplegia is an ambitious goal—but a team of researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the University of California, Irvine (UCI) and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) is now one step closer. The team is building a fully implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) that allows patients to use their thoughts to control wearable robotic legs, known as a robotic exoskeleton. The system is designed to help patients walk while also restoring the sensation of walking. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-brain-interface-paralysis-linking-thoughts.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 12:20:03 EDT news695555942 Even when people with incomplete spinal cord injuries can walk, everyday functions like standing, balancing or producing steady force may remain difficult. A new study shows why. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-reveals-unseen-motor-spinal-cord.html Mon, 13 Apr 2026 18:00:06 EDT news695317201 Peripheral nerve injuries, often caused by traumatic events such as car accidents, falls or battlefield injuries, can leave patients with long-term weakness, numbness or loss of function. Despite surgery and advances in understanding and treating nerve injuries, many patients don't get all their movement or feeling back. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-gene-based-therapy-nerves-severe.html Thu, 09 Apr 2026 19:40:05 EDT news694960181 In aging societies, the role of home-visit rehabilitation (HR)—which provides physical, occupational, and speech therapy in patients' homes—is becoming increasingly important for supporting independent living. Although previous studies have shown that HR can help maintain and improve activities of daily living (ADL) among older adults with limited access to outpatient services, the dose-response relationship between the amount of HR time per week and ADL improvement remains unclear. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-longer-weekly-home-linked-daily.html Sat, 04 Apr 2026 12:00:02 EDT news694175257 Artificial limbs look and function more like real limbs than ever before—but that's only helpful if they are used as intended. One of the main reasons amputees give for not using their body-powered prosthesis is a lack of motivation or knowledge of how to properly use them. Part of the reason for this is that compared to the time and resources devoted to improving the comfort and function of prostheses, much less attention is spent on making prosthetic training more effective. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-augmented-reality-prosthesis.html Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:00:05 EDT news694363070