Cerebrovascular assessments to help understand brain-related changes associated with aerobic exercise after stroke

Abstract

Evidence suggests exercise is “good medicine” after stroke, yet consensus is lacking on the time to initiate, type, exertion level, and duration per session. It remains a challenge to identify outcome measures for stroke−exercise trials that are sufficiently sensitive to intervention parameters. Cerebrovascular assessments, namely cerebral blood flow and intracranial pulsatility, are herein discussed as examples of quantitative brain-specific measures that may be useful to monitor exercise-related brain changes and help to guide stroke rehabilitation interventions. Novelty: Cerebral blood flow and arterial stiffness are potential vascular targets for stroke exercise trials.