The frontal lobes are located at the front of the brain and are responsible for planning movements, organizing thoughts and forming speech. When a stroke occurs in the frontal lobes, any or all of these areas may be affected. Stroke rehabilitation combines therapy and medical management in order to address all of the potential issues resulting from a frontal lobe stroke.
Medical Management
When considering therapy and stroke rehabilitation, most people are not thinking about doctors and nurses. Still, the medical team is a vital part of the stroke rehabilitation process. The American Heart Association stresses the importance of preventing secondary complications after a stroke, which can include falls, a repeat stroke event or other medical conditions like pneumonia. Doctors and nurses coordinate therapy, medical care and medications. They may even follow repeat brain scans to monitor a person's recovery after a frontal lobe stroke.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapists can help a person regain independence with their personal care skills after a frontal lobe stroke. They may work to increase a person's ability with the component skills required for routine tasks such as buttoning a shirt or signing one's name. Occupational therapists address these deficits through exercises, adaptations to daily tasks or the use of helpful assistive devices. For instance, an OT who wants to increase a person's ability with small fasteners may work to increase his pinch strength or may simply use larger fasteners to make the task easier.
Speech Therapy
Speech therapists can not only help a person improve his ability with speaking, but can also address some of the other common cognitive difficulties that can result from a frontal lobe stroke. These include deficits in problem solving and organization. A speech therapist may teach a person to compensate for his word-finding difficulties or work on increasing reasoning skills through practice and simulations of real-life scenarios.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy is another important component of the stroke rehabilitation process. After a frontal lobe stroke, many people experience difficulties with various aspects of movement. They may have trouble with coordination or motor planning, which can impair the ability to stand and walk. A physical therapist can also help a person increase his strength in order to compensate for the one-sided weakness that sometimes results from a frontal lobe stroke. They can also encourage practicing movements and may issue assistive devices such as a cane or specialty walker. Their goals are to increase a person's independence with walking and safely moving from one surface to another.
Recreational Therapy
Recreational therapists are specialized activity therapists and may also be a part of the stroke rehabilitation process. These therapists work to increase a person's ability to return to the activities that he used to enjoy prior to the stroke, or help to find new ways for a person to spend his post-stroke leisure time. For instance, a recreational therapist may teach a person who was an avid card player before his frontal lobe stroke to use a card holder in order to play one-handed. They also help stroke survivors re-integrate into activities in their communities.
