Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 19, 2026
Optimized Management of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke
Published on: January 18, 2018
Timing of initiation of rehabilitation after stroke
Sarah A Maulden1, Julie Gassaway, Susan D Horn
1Salt Lake OI Field Office, Department of Veterans Affairs, Salt Lake City, UT 84102-1282, USA.
Unlabelled:
Maulden SA, Gassaway J, Horn SD, Smout RJ, DeJong G. Timing of initiation of rehabilitation after stroke.
Objective:
To study associations between days from stroke symptom onset to rehabilitation admission and rehabilitation outcomes, controlling for a variety of confounding variables.
Design:
Observational cohort study of 200 consecutive post-stroke rehabilitation patients in each of 6 inpatient rehabilitation facilities.
Setting:
Six U.S. inpatient rehabilitation hospitals.
Participants:
Patients (N=969) with moderate or severe strokes who had days from stroke symptom onset to rehabilitation admission recorded in their medical records.
Interventions:
Not applicable.
Main Outcome Measures:
Discharge total FIM, discharge motor FIM, discharge activities of daily living (ADL) FIM, and discharge mobility FIM scores, as well as rehabilitation length of stay (LOS).
Results:
Fewer days from stroke symptom onset to rehabilitation admission was associated significantly with better functional outcomes: higher total, motor, mobility, and ADL discharge FIM scores, controlling for confounding variables. For severely impaired patients with stroke in case-mix groups (CMGs) 108-114, the relation was strongest, with F statistics greater than 24.1 for each functional outcome. For patients with moderately severe stroke in CMGs 104-107, fewer days from stroke symptom onset to rehabilitation admission was associated significantly with shorter rehabilitation LOS.
Conclusions:
Fewer days from stroke symptom onset to rehabilitation admission is associated with better functional outcomes at discharge and shorter LOS.
