Dr. Mary Kneiser: Exercise for stroke recovery

Dr. Mary Kneiser is a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist based in Michigan. Among her most common patients are those who suffered from stroke and have difficulty in moving and speaking.

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Stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, preventing the flow of blood and oxygen to the brain. When the brain fails to obtain blood and oxygen, it starts to die, making the patient at high risk for brain damage. Symptoms of stroke include having difficulty in speaking and walking, sudden vision changes, and severe headache.

Treatment for stroke depends on its type. However, recovery from stroke, no matter what type it is, requires living a healthier lifestyle which includes being physically active. For rehabilitation specialists, like Dr. Mary Kneiser, exercise helps stroke patients in regaining the ability to move affected parts of the body such as the arms and legs. Exercise also helps in building strength and endurance, and in eliminating some of the risk factors for stroke, such as excess weight and high cholesterol levels.

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Before patients can start exercising, they should first consult with their doctor to formulate a proper exercise plan that suits their current condition. In exercising, it is recommended to include aerobic exercises and resistance and strength training to improve coordination and balance, and to decrease muscle atrophy.

Though many people think that exercising after a stroke is difficult, it actually helps the body recover more quickly and provides long-term benefits that can prevent another stroke from happening.

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To learn more about Dr. Mary Kneiser and her specialties in medicine, visit www.abilityassessments.com.

Mary Kneiser and iliotibial band friction syndrome

Iliotibial band friction syndrome has long been acknowledged as one of the most common lower extremities injuries in long distance runners. Physical medicine and rehabilitation experts, such as Mary Kneiser helps in developing rehabilitation regimens for athletes who have iliotibial band friction syndrome or “runner’s knee.”

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The condition is caused by repetitive movement of the Iliotibial band, a thick band of fibers running from the hip region to the outer thigh region. When a runner performs continuous unbalanced exercises or activities, such as running only on one side of an uphill road or running in one direction on track, this causes the pelvis to tilt to one side, putting stress on the iliotibial band on the knee. Factors that may lead to incurring iliotibial band syndrome injuries include:

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• Overuse syndrome
• Sudden and abrupt physical activities, and increase in training intensity
• Overtraining
• Ill-timed return from injuries
• Faulty biomechanics or movement
• Training flaws

Mary Kneiser and other physiatrists state that there are non-surgical alternatives for treating or alleviating the symptoms of this condition. These include:

• Alteration of warm-up regimens
• Using exercise machines that produce less stress on the iliotibial band
• Using addition heel lifts to compensate for leg length discrepancies
• Cessation or limitation of certain activities

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To avoid incurring this type of injury, runners should carefully choose their running shoes, and take time to properly stretch the leg muscles prior to engaging in long distance runs. It is also advised to rectify any training errors to negate possibilities of either exacerbating the injury, or to avoid incurring it.

For more information about Mary Kneiser, log on to www.abilityassessments.com.

Mary Kneiser and muscular dystrophy

Muscular dystrophy is a hereditary illness, and it causes progressive debilitation and degeneration of a patient’s muscular and skeletal system. Though there is still no cure for this condition, Mary Kneiser and other physiatrists provide patients with various treatments to improve their quality of life.

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Muscular dystrophy is a condition that weakens the muscles of the body that help it move. People who are afflicted with MD have flawed genetic information, restricting the body from producing the dystrophin, the needed for a healthy muscular system. Over time, the patient’s body is debilitated to a degree that it loses the ability to accomplish simple tasks like walking or even sitting up straight. Among the more common types of MD include:

• Duchenne muscular dystrophy 
• Becker muscular dystrophy 
• Limb-girdle dystrophy 
• Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy
• Myotonic muscular dystrophy 

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Physiatrists such as Dr. Mary Kneiser have determined that muscular pathology or dystrophy is a gender-locked disease, meaning that people who are most likely to develop the illness are males. Many females, though carrying the genetic abnormality, remain unaffected, and are unlikely to develop the disease. Their children, however, may develop the disease. Females who carry the genetic defect have a 50 percent chance of passing the disease to their offspring.

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Though there is no cure for MD, specialists such as Dr. Kneiser recommend several modes of prognosis aimed at keeping the patient independent of machine aids and to prevent any complications that may arise from the patient’s weakening muscles. Among these treatments are:

• Assisted ventilation 
• Medications 
• Physical therapy
• Nutritional changes and supplementing 
• Occupational therapy 
• Corrective surgery  

Mary Kneiser conducts her practice at Ability Assessments, PC. For more information, visit www.abilityassessments.com.

Standing right: Mary Kneiser on back pain

Physiatrists such as Mary Kneiser state that proper posture prevents the onset of back pains.

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Most people pay little or no attention to the way they sit, stand, and walk. It is only when they feel back pain that they begin to think about having a correct stance. When a person is not standing or sitting properly, the back muscles are strained, and the spinal discs are heavily impacted. The discs wear out faster due to the uneven stress placed on them, and the cushioning effect of the discs is lessened. Most of the pain is centered on the lower back, where majority of the body’s weight is supported.


Physiatrists such as Mary Kneiser state that good posture habits can help in the prevention of muscle and lower back pains. Practicing good posture benefits the person in a host of ways, such as leading to improved nervous system functions, blood circulation, and digestion, among other things. To practice proper posture, certain steps can be observed such as:


Checking of the curves -- the stance usually becomes exaggerated with age; some muscles lengthen while some shorten. Some exercises can help both in stretching shortened muscles and tone lengthened muscles.

Developing posture awareness -- individuals should develop an awareness of the position of their bodies.

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Doing posture checks -- checking one’s stance at several intervals during the day

Doing several simple posture exercises every day

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Want to know more about Mary Kneiser and proper posture? Follow Dr. Kneiser’s updates on Twitter.

Mary Kneiser: Remediating the effects of Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is not the end of life. Noted physiatrist and physical rehabilitation expert Mary Kneiser, MD, offers therapy programs designed to help patients adapt to the changes attendant to PD, thereby reducing the emotional and physical pain resulting from the disease.

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According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the disease belongs to a category of conditions known as “motor system disorders,” resulting in the stoppage of the production of dopamine in the brain cells. Parkinson’s disease has four prime symptoms:


1. Trembling in the hands, feet, arms, legs and face
2. Rigidity (stiffness in the trunk and limbs)
3. Slowness of movement (bradykenisia)
4. Postural instability

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Should the condition prove resistant to medication, surgery is one of the avenues that doctors opt to use to relieve the effects of PD.

Dr. Mary Kneiser is recognized as one of the leading authorities in the practice of physical medicine and rehabilitation, owing to her numerous awards and accolades in her chosen field. She offers therapy programs to people with musculoskeletal injuries and motor function disorders, in lieu of surgical procedures, for people with neurological ailments, including those afflicted with PD.

Parkinson’s disease is considered to be a chronic and degenerative disorder, in that the condition is long term in nature and gradually increases in severity. Though the condition afflicts both sexes, the condition is more prevalent in males and is usually seen in people over 50 years old. In the United States, it is estimated that 50,000 people are afflicted with the disease each year.

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Compensatory treatment strategies: Noninvasive treatment for PD



Therapy programs cannot stop the onset of PD nor provide a cure. But with therapy, or compensatory treatment strategies, Kneiser states that patients with PD can learn to adapt to new techniques to help them move about and learn to use specialized equipment to help with mobility to compensate for the effects of PD. Patients are taught to adapt to the effects of the disease and reduce complications, rather than resorting to surgery, which may not be the best option given their weakened physical conditions.


Do you want to know more about compensatory treatment strategies and Parkinson’s disease? You can follow Dr. Mary Kneiser on Twitter

Losing control: Mary K. Kneiser and Parkinson's disease

Parkinson’s disease or PD is the most common movement disorder in the world. The condition has no cure, but physiatrists like Dr. Mary K. Kneiser offer therapies that can help patients cope with the changes brought by the disease, reducing the physical—and partly emotional—pain caused by PD.

From Mary Kneiser

Parkinson’s disease is a chronic and progressive disorder, which means that it lasts a long time and gradually worsens. First named in the 1800s, the disease is characterized by slow movement, shaking, muscle stiffness, and the impairment of balance, and can progress to total paralysis. Though it affects both sexes, it is more commonly seen among males and usually develops in people over the age of 50. In the United States alone, there are over 50,000 detected cases of Parkinson’s disease every year.

From Mary Kneiser

The therapy offered by physiatrists like Dr. Mary K. Kneiser cannot reverse the development of the condition. In fact, no drug or treatment can fix the damage caused by the disease on the brain. However, therapy or “compensatory treatment” can help patients learn new movement techniques and strategies, and the usage of special equipment that aid mobility. Therapists also teach individuals certain exercises that can loosen or return strength to the muscles.

Despite the absence of a cure, PD need not be the end for those who have it. Therapy can greatly reduce the pain caused by Parkinson’s disease. Physiatrists like Dr. Mary K. Kneiser can help patients regain control and be assured of a better quality of life.

From Mary Kneiser

More information is available at www.abilityassessments.com.

Mary Kneiser: Bracing yourself for orthotics

From Mary Kneiser

For physical medicine practitioners like Mary Kneiser, the word “brace” has meaning beyond its dental connotations. Orthotics is a medical specialty that uses a device called an orthopedic brace to aid in the treatment and recovery of musculoskeletal disorders.


This discipline combines many sciences, including pathophysiology, anatomy, mathematics, and materials engineering to create the specialized braces used to aid people with conditions like scoliosis.

Mary Kneiser, Google Images

Orthotic devices usually control the movement of a joint; they can also assist movement and aid in correcting the shape of the body to facilitate healing and promote pain-free movement. For the upper body, there are two types of orthotic devices that physiatrists like Mary Kneiser can recommend a patient to use:


• Static orthoses – do not permit movement and are used to provide rigid support for fractures, inflamed tendons, and other serious injuries

• Functional or dynamic orthoses – allow for a free to limited range of motion to help the function of weak muscles.


Braces can be made of plastic or composite materials, and are usually molded to the needs of the patient, although braces can also be bought over the counter.


It is recommend that braces should be placed on affected joints and appendages as determined by a qualified doctor. These areas include the spine, legs and knees, arms, and the hands, wrists, and feet. Choosing an appropriate brace, whether custom-made or off-the-shelf, can help bring back the functionality of a joint in relative safety and comfort.


More information on Mary Kneiser can be accessed at www.abilityassessments.com.

From Mary Kneiser