National Stroke Guidelines 2023
Amy Bean
Friday, April 14th, 2023
On 4th April the new UK and Ireland National Stroke Guidelines 2023 were published. The last published guidelines were the 5th edition in 2016, and 7 years is a long time in medicine.
These Guidelines bring the biggest changes to Stroke Care and Rehabilitation that we have ever seen.
Almost 300 recommendations were reviewed and updated, 62 key questions searched, 676 papers reviewed and the Guidelines were drafted by a group of over 170 topic experts from the UK and ROI, and they are NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellent) accredited.
Here at Saebo we have pored over the Guidelines and thought it would be helpful to highlight some key rehabilitation recommendations that stood out for us that are new to these Guidelines.
Sensory Electrical Stimulation for Pain Management
Amy Bean
Wednesday, March 1st, 2023
The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as “An unpleasant sensory or emotional 
experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage.” And this can be from many different causes ranging from arthritis in a joint, to muscle damage from a sports injury to “post stroke pain” which might be from a shoulder subluxation, spasticity or joint stiffness from lack of movement.
We have previously discussed the use of TENS for pain relief in a previous blog but in this blog we are going to go more in depth into the use of Sensory Electrical Stimulation to manage pain.
Little or no movement in your Arm and Hand? There are Rehab Options for you!
Amy Bean
Tuesday, January 10th, 2023
When there is little or no movement present in the arm early after a neurological injury such as Stroke, it can lead to the arm being ignored.
Focus often shifts to the leg to work on transferring or walking. How can you do exercises when there is no movement? You might therefore get taught positioning, or advised to rest it carefully on a pillow. You may even get provided with a splint to stop it tightening over time.
The good news is there are things you can do to start getting those messages firing within the brain. It’s important to deliver input to the brain to so that it can start to rewire itself; the brain has an amazing ability to adapt and reorganise itself after an injury. You may have heard the term “neuroplasticity” – this is defined as the ability of the nervous system to change its activity in response to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structure, functions, or connections after injuries, such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI) . National Library of Medicine, Neuroplasticity, May 2022
How can input or stimulation be given when there is little or no movement?
Precious Time. Minutes can save lives recognising Stroke Signs
Amy Bean
Tuesday, October 11th, 2022
Awareness of Stroke signs can save lives. Crucial minutes matter.
It is World Stroke Day on October 29th and this years campaign is #precioustime. Knowing the signs and symptoms of a Stroke and acting quickly can save lives and reduce the life changing effects that a stroke may have on someone.
The Importance Of Strength As We Age
Amy Bean
Thursday, June 9th, 2022
Guest Blog written by Phoebe Cassedy, Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist and expert in strength and fitness in older adults.
Most of us know we should all be exercising regularly, probably more than most of us are! Some of us may even recall the recommended amount we should be doing: the UK Public Health Physical Activity Guidelines recommend that adults, and older adults are active daily, with either 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity, or 75 minutes of high or vigorous intensity activity (1). Moderate could be activities such as gardening, brisk walking, cycling (activities causing you to get a bit of short of breath but able to talk in full sentences). High or vigorous activities need to be more intense than this, including running or sports (enough to cause fast breathing and you shouldn’t be able to talk in full sentences). These are recommendations for all adults, including older adults and those living with chronic conditions.
Multiple Sclerosis
Amy Bean
Wednesday, May 25th, 2022
World MS day is the 30th May. The theme for 2022 (and 2023) is to build connections. Build connections to quality care, build connections to communities, both local and worldwide, and to build connections with yourself if you have MS.
To help support World MS Day, we wanted to provide a beginners guide to learning more about MS. What is it? How does it affect people? What treatment and management is available? and can Saebo help in anyway?
Foot Drop – Charlotte’s Journey
Amy Bean
Tuesday, March 29th, 2022
Charlotte Chandler
In June 2021, I suffered an L5/S1 disc herniation during a warm up at my dance fitness class. The disc compression resulted in right sided foot drop. Having always been a fairly active person and on the go mum of 2 this came as a bit of a shock. Not only was I dealing with the most severe pain I’d ever experienced, I now had something called foot drop which I knew nothing about. On discharge from hospital where I was first taken by ambulance, I remember being unable to put my shoe on and asking for assistance. My foot felt like it was being put in a shoe 2 sizes too small and felt very unpleasant. I also noticed that I couldn’t move my toes up and down. The first few days and weeks were awful as I couldn’t walk without my husband’s support. On the day I first saw my consultant, I had to walk in without my husband. I was so embarrassed as I struggled to walk across the reception. My consultant referred me for an MRI, which I had the following day, and arranged for me to see a Physio.
Know Your Blood Pressure
Amy Bean
Thursday, February 17th, 2022
How often should you record your blood pressure (BP) when you pass the grand old age of 40?
The NHS website has a section dedicated to hypertension which is a great starting point to learn more.
The NHS website advises that you should get your BP checked at least every 5 years once you reach the age of 40. The Stroke Association website advises all adults to check at least once every 5 years, preferably more often. In the UK alone there could be 5.5 million people living with untreated hypertension. We have over 100,000 strokes in the UK per year. When you think about the number of people living with untreated hypertension, this number of 100,000 strokes every year becomes more understandable.
Virtually Successful Conference
Amy Bean
Monday, January 31st, 2022
Saebo UK have been lucky enough to be part of the Virtually Successful Conference that took place last week, and we wanted to round up some of the highlights from this inaugural online conference on all things “TeleHealth”.
The Virtually Successful Conference was organised by the team behind the Remote Rehab online community. The Remote Rehab
Funding Sources
Amy Bean
Wednesday, May 12th, 2021
We often get asked for advice on how to source funding, if self funding isn’t an option. We also support NHS teams putting together business cases for equipment, either for their team to use, or for individuals. We therefore have put together this resource for funding options and support.
Company Registration #05329639