Walking aids for hemiplegia.

What is hemiplegia?

Hemiplegia is a condition known as paralysis of one side of the body. If you suffer from hemiplegia, you either have congenital hemiplegia or acquired hemiplegia. Congenital hemiplegia is paralysis of one side of the body due to a brain lesion that occurred before, during or just after birth. Acquired hemiplegia is the result of a brain injury sustained later in life.

What causes hemiplegia?

Hemiplegia is caused by damage to the cerebral motor system, the part of the brain that controls body movements. Depending on the location of the lesion, different parts of your body may be affected.

The most common cause of hemiplegia is a stroke. In a stroke, the blood supply to a part of the brain is blocked (thrombosis or hemorrhage), leading to lasting brain damage or even death.

What are the symptoms of hemiplegia?

Hemiplegia affects each person differently, depending on the location of the affected part of the brain and the extent of the lesion. Hemiplegia is a non-progressive disorder. This means that your symptoms will not worsen over time.

Here are some of the most common motor symptoms:

– muscle weakness or stiffness on one side
– muscular spasticity or permanently contracted muscles
– poor fine motor skills
– difficulty walking
– impaired balance
– difficulty grasping objects

If you have a paralyzed body part, you may describe the sensation as one of heaviness, tension or fatigue, with periods of pain, tingling and numbness.

A unique solution

Hemiplegia is treated by addressing the underlying cause and using various forms of therapy to regain motor function in the affected body part. In addition to physical therapy, treatment mainly involves treating symptoms such as pain and tremors. If you’re a patient recovering from a stroke, your physical treatment often starts with regaining control of movement and relearning to walk. Depending on the severity of your stroke, regaining the ability to control arm and leg movements can be a long and difficult process.

Since one side of your body is paralyzed, you may have difficulty finding a mobility device that suits your situation. Mobility aids such as walkers (with wheels) require two steady hands for safe use. An ordinary cane may seem easier to use, but it offers less stability than a quadripod cane. In both cases, you have to lift the mobility aid when you walk, which leads to instability between each step.