CIMT
The power is in your hands
About CIMT
Historical development of Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy
CIMT evolved from Taub’s early work with monkeys that underwent unilateral surgery that left the limb impaired (deafferentation by dorsal rhizotomy). Observations of the monkeys thereafter found that the monkeys resorted to using their unaffected arm after unsuccessful attempts at using the surgically injured arm.
Taub hypothesized that disuse of the affected arm was a learned phenomenon. However, this learning of “non-use” can be reversed by training and practice. This idea was supported when training of the deafferented arm and immobilising the unaffected arm for a period of one to two weeks resulted in the animal maintaining use of the affected arm even after the constraint of the unaffected arm was removed.
As a result, CIMT was applied to humans who suffered from hemiparesis following stroke where motor incapacitation was the result of cortical injury (Hakkennes, S. & Keating, J.L., 2005).
What is CIMT?
The purpose of constraint-induced movement therapy is to encourage the individual to use the affected limb to increased quality of movement during the performance of tasks.
Ultimately, CIMT strives to help individuals with post-stroke hemiplegia to regain functional mobility in their upper extremity in order to promote increased independence, participation in tasks of daily living, and quality of life. CIMT focuses on skills training that is transferrable to real-world environments (McIntyre et al., 2012).
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