Background and Purpose - The effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation (FES) has been investigated in chronic hemiplegia. The present study examines whether FES, given during acute stroke, was more effective ...Background and Purpose - The effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation (FES) has been investigated in chronic hemiplegia. The present study examines whether FES, given during acute stroke, was more effective in promoting motor recovery of the lower extremity and walking ability than standard rehabilitation alone. Methods - Forty- six subjects, 70.9± 8.0 years old and 9.2± 4.1 days after stroke, were assigned randomly to 1 of 3 groups receiving standard rehabilitation with FES or placebo stimulation or alone (control). FES was applied 30 minutes and placebo stimulation 60 minutes, 5 days per week for 3 weeks. Outcome measurements included composite spasticity score, maximum isometric voluntary contraction of ankle dorsi- flexors and planter- flexors, and walking ability. They were recorded before treatment, weekly during the 3- week treatment, and at week 8 after stroke. Results - No significant differences were found in the baseline measurements. After 3 weeks of treatment, there was a significant reduction in the percentage of composite spasticity score, and a significant improvement in the ankle dorsiflexion torque, accompanied by an increase in agonist electromyogram and a reduction in electromyogram cocontraction ratio in the FES group, when compared with the other 2 groups (P < 0.05). All subjects in the FES group were able to walk after treatment, and 84.6% of them returned home, in comparison with the placebo (53.3% ) and control (46.2% , P < 0.05) groups. Conclusions - Fifteen sessions of FES, applied to subjects with acute stroke plus standard rehabilitation, improved their motor and walking ability to the degree that more subjects were able to return to home.展开更多
Objective: To evaluate whether Parkinsonian patients could modify the speed of a sit-to-stand (STS) task to the same extent as that of healthy subjects. Met hods: Twenty Parkinsonian patients and 20 control subjects w...Objective: To evaluate whether Parkinsonian patients could modify the speed of a sit-to-stand (STS) task to the same extent as that of healthy subjects. Met hods: Twenty Parkinsonian patients and 20 control subjects were instructed to st and up at a natural and fast speed. Kinematic data and kinetic data were recorde d. Results: Parkinsonian patients were significantly slower than healthy individ uals during STS at a natural speed. When required to perform STS task at a fast speed,these patients could increase both peak horizontal and vertical velocities of the task, by significantly increasing hip and ankle dorsiflexion torques and the rate of torque production, just as the control subjects did. In fact, no di fference was found for the percentage changes in both peak velocities and moveme nt time between the two groups, though similar between-group differences during STS at a natural speed still existed at a fast speed. Conclusions: Parkinsonian patients had problems in generating adequate lower limb joint torques and in th e rate of torque production when performing STS at a natural speed.However, thes e patients were capable of increasing the speed of their STS with the same perce ntage changes as those of healthy subjects. Significance: The capability of Park insonian patients for increasing movement speed gives new insights to rehabilita tion strategy.展开更多
文摘Background and Purpose - The effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation (FES) has been investigated in chronic hemiplegia. The present study examines whether FES, given during acute stroke, was more effective in promoting motor recovery of the lower extremity and walking ability than standard rehabilitation alone. Methods - Forty- six subjects, 70.9± 8.0 years old and 9.2± 4.1 days after stroke, were assigned randomly to 1 of 3 groups receiving standard rehabilitation with FES or placebo stimulation or alone (control). FES was applied 30 minutes and placebo stimulation 60 minutes, 5 days per week for 3 weeks. Outcome measurements included composite spasticity score, maximum isometric voluntary contraction of ankle dorsi- flexors and planter- flexors, and walking ability. They were recorded before treatment, weekly during the 3- week treatment, and at week 8 after stroke. Results - No significant differences were found in the baseline measurements. After 3 weeks of treatment, there was a significant reduction in the percentage of composite spasticity score, and a significant improvement in the ankle dorsiflexion torque, accompanied by an increase in agonist electromyogram and a reduction in electromyogram cocontraction ratio in the FES group, when compared with the other 2 groups (P < 0.05). All subjects in the FES group were able to walk after treatment, and 84.6% of them returned home, in comparison with the placebo (53.3% ) and control (46.2% , P < 0.05) groups. Conclusions - Fifteen sessions of FES, applied to subjects with acute stroke plus standard rehabilitation, improved their motor and walking ability to the degree that more subjects were able to return to home.
文摘Objective: To evaluate whether Parkinsonian patients could modify the speed of a sit-to-stand (STS) task to the same extent as that of healthy subjects. Met hods: Twenty Parkinsonian patients and 20 control subjects were instructed to st and up at a natural and fast speed. Kinematic data and kinetic data were recorde d. Results: Parkinsonian patients were significantly slower than healthy individ uals during STS at a natural speed. When required to perform STS task at a fast speed,these patients could increase both peak horizontal and vertical velocities of the task, by significantly increasing hip and ankle dorsiflexion torques and the rate of torque production, just as the control subjects did. In fact, no di fference was found for the percentage changes in both peak velocities and moveme nt time between the two groups, though similar between-group differences during STS at a natural speed still existed at a fast speed. Conclusions: Parkinsonian patients had problems in generating adequate lower limb joint torques and in th e rate of torque production when performing STS at a natural speed.However, thes e patients were capable of increasing the speed of their STS with the same perce ntage changes as those of healthy subjects. Significance: The capability of Park insonian patients for increasing movement speed gives new insights to rehabilita tion strategy.
