# Therapeutic interventions for post-stroke rehabilitation

> **NIH VA I01** · MIAMI VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM · 2022 · —

## Abstract

Stroke remains one of the leading causes of death and disability in the USA. The principal objective of the
current proposal is to test the efficacy of combined therapeutic hypothermia with whole body vibration on
post-stroke cognitive improvement using a model of stroke in aged rats. There are three main types of
stroke: transient ischemic attack, hemorrhagic stroke and acute ischemic stroke, with the latter constituting
87% of total stroke cases. Currently, the only clinical therapies available for acute ischemic stroke are
thrombolysis (tPA) and mechanical endovascular recanalization, both of which have only limited
applications in a small number of patients. Cognitive decline is one of the most significant problems
affecting almost two-thirds of stroke survivors for up to 6 years post-stroke. Therefore, identifying novel
neuroprotective strategies to improve post-stroke cognition remains a high priority. In animal models of
stroke (transient middle cerebral artery occlusion – tMCAO), behavioral studies yield evidence of deficits
in spatial, non-spatial, and motor learning. These deficits can be minimized in middle-aged rat models
of stroke with noninvasive whole body vibration (WBV) therapy. Likewise, long-standing research
from our laboratory shows that therapeutic hypothermia (TH) is a potent neuroprotective therapy in
experimental cerebral ischemia with multiple effects at several stages of the ischemic cascade. The
translational goal of our successful study will be to identify a novel therapeutic approach for stroke
rehabilitation that can be moved quickly to testing in clinical trials.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10314765
- **Project number:** 1I01RX003506-01A2
- **Recipient organization:** MIAMI VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM
- **Principal Investigator:** Helen M Bramlett
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-11-01 → 2025-10-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10314765

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10314765, Therapeutic interventions for post-stroke rehabilitation (1I01RX003506-01A2). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10314765. Licensed CC0.

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