Local Miami Teacher Becomes First Stroke Patient in South Florida to Receive Nerve Stimulation Implant to Regain Upper Limb Function

By: Krysten Brenlla

Arlet Lara, 50, and her family always prioritized their health. That’s why when the local math teacher suffered a stroke in 2020, it came as a shock to everyone.

Lara was in the middle of giving a virtual exam in May 2020 when she told her assistants she was going to step away to prepare a coffee.

As she was heating her coffee in the microwave, she collapsed in her kitchen.

“It felt like someone hit me and threw me to the floor,” Lara said. “It was massive. My son was there and called 911 immediately. The last thing I remember is emergency medical services picking me up – and then my life turned upside down.”

Lara was transported to the nearest hospital, where she spent weeks recovering in the intensive care unit. The stroke caused her brain to swell, ultimately affecting the left side of her body.

She could no longer move her left arm, hand, or leg.

“I was 46 at that time, and the doctors told my husband to be very careful because the younger we are, the more dangerous the stroke can be,” Lara said.

During her stay at the hospital, her brain continued to swell and she fell into a coma. Lara needed an emergency craniotomy, which is a surgical procedure that removes a portion of the skull to help relieve pressure.

“I was almost gone,” Lara said.

Three weeks after surgery, she woke up from her coma, and alongside her family, they began to search for a rehabilitation hospital. As a result, they found Gemayaret Alvarez-Gonzalez, MD, medical director of neurological rehabilitation at Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at UHealth/Jackson Memorial.

“When I first saw Arlet in 2021, she had significant limitations with her mobility, and had tremendous amount of spasticity, or stiffness in her muscles,” Dr. Alvarez said. “Despite her challenges, Arlet was always resilient and willing to put in the work during her therapy. She was always looking at new research or innovations to help her regain the function she needed.”

At Lynn Rehabilitation Center, Lara worked with physical and occupational therapists on her mobility and balance. She also worked with recreational therapists in aquatic therapy, which further enhanced her mobility and overall function.

“One of my biggest goals was strengthening my leg, going to the gym by myself, and getting up from the floor without assistance – and my therapists at Lynn Rehabilitation Center helped me reach those goals and more,” Lara said. “I’m able to do so many things that I wasn’t able to do before.”

Although her mobility improved, she never regained full function of the left side of her body. However, Lara never gave up hope, and after doing more research, she came across the only FDA-approved nerve stimulation implant to help stroke survivors regain upper limb function.

Results from a clinical trial show the Vivistim® Paired VNS™ System, when paired with high-repetition, task-specific occupational or physical therapy, helps generate two to three times more hand and arm function for stroke survivors than rehabilitation therapy alone. The small, pacemaker-like device is implanted under the skin in the upper-left chest and neck areas during a same-day procedure, and can be implanted in patients who are at least six months post-stroke and have not regained full hand and arm function.

By July 2024, Jackson Health System and UHealth – University of Miami Health System became the first in South Florida to perform the nerve stimulation implant, and Lara was the first recipient.

Since August, she and her occupational therapist at Lynn Rehabilitation Center, Neil Batungbakal, have worked on 90-minute Vivistim Therapy™ exercises three times a week, with goals like writing, driving, tooth brushing, and hair combing in mind.

“The Vivistim implant allows stroke survivors to start incorporating small changes back into their daily lives,” Batungbakal said. “It doesn’t sound like a lot, but for someone with limited function, it can be life-changing.”

Lara hopes the device will help her regain full function of her left hand and arm, and she’s optimistic her story can help other stroke survivors in their recovery journey.

“I’m extremely grateful, and I feel so blessed to be here at Jackson,” Lara said. “This is what I’ve been waiting for.”

For more information on the FDA-approved Vivistim® Paired VNS™ System at Jackson and UHealth, visit https://uhealthjacksonneurosurgery.org/.