Article

PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between upper limb impairments and
activity limitation. METHOD: A cross sectional, single assessment observational
study in which people with hemiplegia as a result of a stroke underwent a testing
procedure in an instrumented wrist rig in which the following measures of
impairment were recorded: Spasticity; motor control (ability to track a moving
target); muscle activation patterns during tracking; stiffness; range of active
movement and isometric muscle strength. Participants also performed clinical
tests of upper limb activity (Action Research Arm Test) and hyper-tonicity
(Modified Ashworth Scale). RESULTS: Seventeen people with hemiplegia whose mean
age was 57 (SD 13.4) took part. Their mean upper limb activity, measured by the
Action Research Arm Test, was 19.3 (SD 11.2). Statistically significant positive
relationships between level of activity and the negative features of the upper
motor neuron syndrome such as motor control r = 0.710 (p = 0.003), active range
of movement r = 0.540 (p = 0.025) and strength into flexion r = 0.515 (p = 0.034)
and extension r = 0.575 (p = 0.016) were identified, but not with the positive
features, such as spasticity or the secondary features such as stiffness.
CONCLUSIONS: The negative features of the upper motor neuron syndrome appear more
likely to affect upper limb activity than the positive or secondary features, but
findings need confirming in different study populations, preferably with larger
samples.

Langue : ANGLAIS