Functional Splinting for the Post-Stroke Upper Extremity

Course overview

This course reviews how functional splinting can be used to support more effective upper-extremity task practice following stroke. Participants will explore how splinting may improve a patient's ability to participate in task-specific activities by optimizing hand or wrist positioning, supporting functional alignment, and enabling a higher number of active repetitions during therapy. The course will also discuss how paired VNS treatment sessions can incorporate functional splinting strategies while maintaining adherence to Paired VNS therapy principles, including active engagement, high repetition, task specificity, salience, and patient-centered ADL/IADL outcomes.