Frenkel exercises are a set of exercises developed by Professor Heinrich Sebastian Frenkel[1] to treat ataxia, in particular cerebellar ataxia.[2]
They are a system of exercises consisting of slow, repeated movements. They increase in difficulty over the time of the program.[3] The patient watches their hand or arm movements (for example) and corrects them as needed.[4]
Although the technique is simple, needs virtually no exercise equipment, and can be done on one's own, concentration and some degree of perseverance is required. Research has shown that 20,000 to 30,000 repetitions may be required to produce results.[5][6] A simple calculation will show that this can be achieved by doing 60 repetitions every hour for six weeks in a 16-hour daily waking period. The repetitions will take just a few minutes every hour.
The brain as a whole learns to compensate for motor deficits in the cerebellum (or the spinal cord where applicable). If the ataxia affects say, head movements, the patient can use a mirror or combination of mirrors to watch their own head movements.
The exercises were developed by Heinrich Frenkel, a Swiss neurologist who, one day in 1887, while examining a patient with ataxia, observed the patient's poor performance of the finger-to-nose test.
The patient asked Dr Frenkel about the test and was told what it meant and that he did not 'pass' the test. Several months later, on re-examination, the patient showed extraordinary improvement in coordination.