Article

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of thermal stimulation (TS) on the lower
extremity (LE) movement and function in patients with stroke. DESIGN: A
double-blinded randomized controlled trial. SETTING: A university hospital.
PARTICIPANTS: Patients (N=34) at least 3 months after stroke were randomly
assigned into the experimental and the control groups. INTERVENTIONS: In addition
to regular rehabilitation, the experimental group received a 30-minute noxious TS
protocol (heat pain 46-47 degrees C/cold pain 2-3 degrees C) 3days/wk for 8
weeks, and the control group received a 30-minute innocuous TS protocol (heat
40-41 degrees C/cold 23-24 degrees C) 3d/wk for 8 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:
The Low Extremity subscale of the Stroke Rehabilitation Assessment of Movement
(LE-STREAM), the Mobility subscale of STREAM (Mob-STREAM), the Functional
Ambulation Category (FAC), the Barthel Index (BI), the Postural Assessment Scale
for Stroke Patients (PASS), and the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) were
administered by a blinded rater at baseline, posttreatment (8wk), and follow-up
(12wk). RESULTS: Twenty-three participants completed the study protocol and all
outcome measurements. No preexisting group differences between the experimental
group (n=11) and the control group (n=12) were found on demographic and clinical
variables. Compared with baseline, the experimental group showed significant
improvements at posttreatment and follow-up on the LE-STREAM, Mob-STREAM, FAC,
and BI (P<.05) while the control group showed no significant improvements for all
outcome measures. As for the between-group comparison, significant differences
were seen at follow-up (12wk) on the LE-STREAM, Mob-STREAM, BI, and MAS.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that an 8-week program of noxious TS combined
with a traditional stroke rehabilitation program can improve the LE-related
movement and function in patients with stroke for more than 3 months.
CI - Copyright (c) 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS