Post-stroke rehabilitation. A review of the guidelines for patient management.

A comprehensive, intense rehabilitation program is key to successful convalescence for patients who have experienced stroke. A guideline on post-stroke rehabilitation published by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality provides clinicians with detailed recommendations for managing patients who have sustained a brain attack. Rehabilitation should begin following diagnosis and after any life-threatening issues have been effectively managed. The key steps include patient management during the acute phase, screening for rehabilitation and choice of setting, managing rehabilitation, and facilitating the patient's transition back into the community. The timeliness of rehabilitation interventions and the intensity of rehabilitation services are important factors in maximizing a patient's functional outcome at hospital discharge and on follow-up.