Brain & Gait Rehab
-
- Tweet
Eastside Family Health Center
Internal Medicine & Sports Medicine located in Kirkland, WA
Your balance and steadiness can deteriorate as you get older, leaving you vulnerable to falls and serious injuries. Frank Marinkovich, MD, and his specialist team at Eastside Family Health Center in Kirkland, Washington, use brain and gait rehab to reduce your risk of falls and help you feel more confident in being physically active. To benefit from the practice's brain and gait rehab program, call Eastside Family Health Center today or book an appointment online.
Brain & Gait Rehab Q&A
What is brain and gait rehab?
Brain and gait rehab is a comprehensive program that Dr. Marinkovich and his team of neurotherapists, kinesiologists, and other clinicians began at Eastside Family Health Center to reduce the risk of life-changing falls in older adults.
Falls in older people can lead to severe injuries such as fractures, spinal damage, and brain trauma. Falling and the fear of falling also prevent older adults from doing many of the daily tasks and activities they enjoy.
The conventional approach is to attend to the patient's injuries after they've had a fall, but brain and gait rehab focus on preventing these incidents.
Why is it important to prevent falls with brain and gait rehab?
Most older adults suffer declining stability from 50 onward, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports about 3 million older Americans visit hospital emergency rooms each year for fall-related injuries. Among older adults, falls account for 64 deaths out of 100,000.
Brain and gait rehab seeks to change these alarming statistics by taking a proactive approach to dealing with falls, so age-related physical deterioration doesn't lead to serious injuries or death.
What are the benefits of brain and gait rehab?
The brain and gait rehab program at Eastside Family Health Center is an eight-week course during which Dr. Marinkovich and his team perform a detailed evaluation of your fall risk. They then design a customized plan of therapies that reduces your risk of falls.
Brain and gait rehab aim to improve your mobility and help you stay independent, build your endurance, and strengthen your gait.
Dr. Marinkovich can identify and implement lifestyle changes that reduce your risk of falling and help you overcome any fear of falling that's affecting your quality of life.
What does the brain and gait rehab program involve?
The first step in your brain and gait rehab is to assess your fall risk.
Eastside Family Health Center uses a noninvasive multielectrode device (quantitative electroencephalogram or qEEG) to detect any irregularities in your brain waves that could increase your likelihood of falling.
The qEEG data helps with the evaluation process so Dr. Marinkovich and his team can prepare a training program that addresses your unique needs. The program consists of balance retraining, gait training, and customized exercises that help with muscle strengthening.
Find out how brain and gait rehab could free you from the fear of falling injuries by calling Eastside Family Health Center today, or booking an appointment online.