Preschool teacher Kylie had a bleed in the basal ganglia: an area of the brain where the blood vessels are particularly small and narrow, making them much more vulnerable to tearing or blocking. Kylie was severely affected and had trouble with sensation and movement on her right side. A couple of days before Christmas, she was transferred to Bristol’s BIRU (the Frenchay Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre) for ongoing complex rehabilitation.
After a total of six months in three different hospitals and at the end of her rehab period in BIRU, Kylie was able to walk with a stick outdoors and short periods without a stick indoors, participate in some self care activities and communicate well but had not regained much use of her right arm, which as a keen baker, was a massive knock to her.
Following six weeks of community rehabilitation, Kylie knew that the results achieved so far were not enough and that this could not be the end of her rehab journey. She had heard about the Upper Limb Intensive Rehabilitation service at Hobbs Bristol and embarked an intensive 40 hour programme tailored to her goals and rehab needs.
One device she used was the Tyromotion PABLO, which is a hand sensor therapy device with built-in sensors that track the grip force and range of motion and offers interactive motion training with audio-visual feedback. Kylie’s quiet determination proved so impactful as she slowly grew in her own confidence. The intensive hands-on therapy combined with high dosage and repetition provided by some of the Tyrosolution suite of devices, was getting results. Kylie used the Tyromotion DIEGO which is a unique robotic upper extremity rehabilitation device. Its three-dimensional therapeutic area and virtual reality promotes therapy progress and allows functional training according the individual rehabilitation goals. Kylie used the DIEGO for anti-gravity work on her shoulders. The therapy is designed to be fun, engaging and relating to real world tasks, and Kylie even managed to use a rolling pin.
Family is massively important for Kylie and her husband Steve accompanied her for many of her intensive therapy sessions, lending his belief and motivation at just the right times. Kylie used the Tyromotion AMADEO, working towards being able to work on her finger flexion and extension – dexterity being one of the major things that her stroke affected. Kylie embarked on a further bout of intensive therapy at Hobbs Rehabilitation Intensive Neurotherapy Centre in Bristol and now home, she enjoys spending time baking with the help of her daughter. But the rehab doesn’t stop there…
Kylie works with a local independent neurological physiotherapist Colin Domaille, who is taking the functional task training achieved in the clinic, to do meaningful activities out and about as well as around the home, continuing the therapy. Hobbs Rehabilitation often collaborates with local therapists; our mission is to put the patient at the centre of their care. Kylie returned for her third round of treatment with Hobbs Rehabilitation at the Bristol Intensive Neurotherapy Centre which provides a full programme of concentrated physiotherapy alongside state-of-the-art assistive technologies.