Carolina Carmona
Papers
6
Total Citations
171
H-Index
5
About
Carolina Carmona is a leading researcher in stroke rehabilitation, specializing in the recovery of upper limb function after hemiparetic stroke. Her work centers on understanding and treating the debilitating loss of independent joint control, known as flexion synergy, which limits reaching and grasping in chronic stroke survivors. Carmona’s major contributions include the development and clinical validation of Progressive Abduction Loading Therapy (PALT), a targeted exercise approach that uses horizontal-plane viscous resistance to systematically weaken abnormal muscle coactivation patterns. Her landmark 2018 randomized clinical trial (62 citations) demonstrated that PALT significantly improves reaching function in individuals with chronic moderate-to-severe impairment, offering a new paradigm for rehabilitation. She has also advanced the neurophysiological understanding of stroke, showing that neuromodulatory inputs to motoneurons contribute to flexion synergy (37 citations) and that ipsilateral secondary motor areas have limited capacity to support hand function post-stroke (34 citations). Her innovative use of hemicraniectomy patients as a noninvasive platform for studying high gamma activity (23 citations) bridges rehabilitation with brain-machine interface research. Carmona’s work is reshaping how clinicians address upper extremity disability, providing evidence-based, device-assisted strategies that restore meaningful function.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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