ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Technology is helping people who have had a stroke get back to the life they knew.
ABC Action News Anchor Lauren St. Germain listened to a Tampa Bay area woman who says the device has been a game changer in her recovery and spoke with a neurologist to learn how the implant can help people years after they have had a stroke.
Watch full report from Lauren St. Germain
St. Germain met Paula Adams in the studio where she does Pilates every week in St. Petersburg. Adams takes us back several years, to when she had two strokes. She explained what happened after the second stroke.
“Woke up the next day, had nothing on the left side. Completely gone,” said Adams.
Physical therapy helped her regain movement and she started doing pilates to improve her flexibility and strength. Then, earlier this year, she learned about technology helping people just like her.
“I received the Vivistim implant. It’s a vagus nerve stimulator and when paired with therapy and activity, it helps the brain make new connections to previously disconnected parts of your body. It’s like a super charger. It’s crazy how fast it works,” said Adams.
“Vivistim is a really cool technology because its one of, we have so very few technologies that can improve patient outcomes after a stroke and generally they are limited to right when the stroke happens,” said Dr. John Cassel. Cassel is a neurologist with TGH & USF Health.
He continued “Vivistim is great in that it allows a subset of patients who have persistent motor deficits and dexterity deficits in their hands after a stroke to get motor recovery – functionally based recovery – that can be right after your stroke - six months after your stroke when they are officially a candidate – or it can be 20 years after their stroke."
Adams did rehab therapy with the device and now she uses it at home and during activities like Pilates. It helps people who have had a stroke regain hand and arm function.
“It’s really telling the brain wake up this part is still connected to your body,” said Adams.
She swipes a magnet over the implant to activate it.
“It activates it for 30 minutes,” said Adams. She explains she does this about eight times a day.
Adams says prior to the implant, she could not do certain exercises and her pilates instructor needed to do the majority of the work. She says her grip strength has really improved.
“What does the future look like for you now?” asked St. Germain.
“It’s bright. It was the first time that I felt like I really had hope,” said Adams.
“She never gave up and never will and that’s why she is where she is today,” said Colette Delangre, owner and founder of Rare Body Pilates.
“But I also knew in the end I needed to keep moving forward because you can’t live in the tears and you have to get beyond that. I have a good tribe of people. I have a lot of encouragers that don’t let me circle the drain for long,” said Adams.
Pasco County woman trying to rebuild mobile home after hurricanes
"I cried, of course, because I've worked very hard getting it nice, which has been difficult for me since I lost my husband and being alone,” Kelly Welty said.
Welty's mobile home lost its roof during Hurricane Milton. She said it was the only one in the Buena Vista community to get totaled by a tornado.
