People who have had a stroke needed for study

Nine people are needed for the NHS study

People from Cornwall who have had a stroke in the past 10 years have been asked to participate in a study.

Staff at NHS Cornwall Partnership Trust said they needed nine people who have had a stroke between six months and 10 years ago.

The trust's research team and stroke and neurological rehabilitation service will look at ways to help arm recovery after a stroke.

Angela Gibbon, consultant physiotherapist, said the study would look to see whether the current rehabilitation process could be improved.

Muscle stimulation

The trial is known as Triceps (transcutaneous limb recovery post-stroke) and will look at a treatment called transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation.

It is led by researchers from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Sheffield.

Ms Gibbon said: “Upper limb rehab for people who have had a stroke tends to consist of lots of repetitive activities with the arm, strengthening exercises.

"This means using the arm a lot in functional tasks.

"So, getting people to do everyday activities. Sometimes we use electrical stimulation to stimulate the muscles in the arm."

Liz Tremayne-Ward, team lead for the trust’s stroke and neurological rehabilitation service, said the study was really exciting.

"We rarely get studies that focus on people with strokes further down the line in their stroke recovery.

"For us it’s about developing evidence. This is an exciting opportunity to get something evidence-based to under-pin on practice."

"We will also see if this is a therapy we can offer our patients," she added.