Advancing neurologic research and recovery

Angie Pellerito was working to close a real estate deal in April 2022 when she noticed tingling in her leg. When she tried to stand, she fell against the wall and couldn't move.

"I couldn't speak," she recalled. "I knew what I wanted to say, but the words couldn't come out."

She was rushed to Christiana Hospital, where doctors told her she'd had a stroke at age 60.

"My entire right side was paralyzed," she said.

Rehabilitation followed, and she worked to regain her mobility. Sixty days later, she walked 800 steps from outpatient rehab to her car.

"I was totally exhausted, but it was a good exhaustion," she said. "I was very motivated because I want to play with my grandchildren and travel."

In her search for more support, Pellerito found several ongoing clinical stroke studies at the University of Delaware.

"Anything available, I signed up for it," she said. "With every study, I learned a little bit more about what had happened to me and how I could improve my gait and better help myself."

Now, UD's College of Health Sciences (CHS) is establishing the Delaware Center for Neurologic Rehabilitation & Recovery Research (DCNR3), a new hub designed to advance neurologic health research in Delaware and the region and help more people like Pellerito.

The DCNR3 will connect 30 faculty members across disciplines who study stroke, Parkinson's disease and related neurologic rehabilitation and recovery. It also links UD's robust Stroke Research Registry and its growing Parkinson's Disease Research Registry, which together include more than 1,300 individuals with stroke or PD who are interested in participating in research.

The Center will be led by senior director Susanne Morton, professor of physical therapy (PT), and co-directors Darcy Reisman, chair and professor of PT, and Roxana Burciu, associate professor of kinesiology and applied physiology (KAAP).