Introducing Tailwind
Here you can learn about Tailwind™, a unique device that clinical studies have
demonstrated can permanently improve arm movement in stroke patients who
have lost upper extremity function - even years after their stroke event. The device is also helpful in improving arm function following brain injury, tumor and cerebral palsy. Tailwind is
a home-based exercise device developed by researchers at
the University of Maryland Medical School.
Effective for Stroke Survivors
Tailwind consists of two handles that move along independent
resistance-free tracks. The user moves the handles along each track
from different starting marks - and has auditory cues to guide when to
move his or
her arms. It is a "sound-to-brain" neural pathway retraining approach
that is theorised to help users with mild stroke symptoms achieve
life-altering results.
First of a Kind for Stroke
Tailwind has been demonstrated in clinical studies to permanently improve arm movement in stroke patients who have lost upper extremity function. In published
clinical studies, the science behind Tailwind was found to be a potentially useful solution in stroke rehabilitation.
So don't let discouragement from years of rehab that did not deliver the results you wanted prevent you from trying new Tailwind. If you have the motivation
to work with this device, research suggests it will work for you.
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Rehabilitation
in your own hands
The Tailwind Story - University of Maryland
In life – and in science especially – there are sometimes happy accidents, turns in the road you don’t expect but which lead in exciting directions. Such was the case with Jill Whitall, PhD, professor, and Sandra McCombe-Waller, PT, PhD, associate professor, whose research into a bilateral arm rehabilitation device unexpectedly brought them a patented product and a whirlwind of attention.
They never set out to create such a stir when they first started this research in the late 1990s. Their primary concern was the stroke patients coming through their doors, who were traditionally offered rehabilitative options to improve leg function and gait but did not get the same attention paid to their affected upper extremities.
Utilizing their past experience with rhythmic cueing devices and motor-learning principles, McCombe-Waller and Whitall came up with the idea for the BATRAC (Bilateral Arm Training with Rhythmic Auditory Cueing) device. They worked with a physical therapy student, David Grant, to build their first prototype. This first device was made of wood, and was used in the initial research study, which investigated the response to six weeks of training in individuals with chronic hemiparesis.
“Our initial intent was never to make a device and sell it,’” says McCombe-Waller. “Our motivation has been studying the use of the device and how to help people with stroke regain arm function. Initially, it was targeted for lower-functioning people, for whom there really was nothing. They had no options; they didn’t even qualify for studies at that time.”
You can download the whole story - an article by Caelie M. Haines in the University of Maryland Fall Bulletin - as a PDF using this link or via clicking the image above. NOTE: Image is 648 Kb PDF and may open a new browser window.