Is the basic trunk control recovery different between stroke patients with right and left hemiparesis?

Area of Science:

• Neurorehabilitation
• Stroke recovery
• Motor control

Background:

• Basic trunk movement control is crucial for post-stroke rehabilitation.
• Impaired trunk control significantly impacts recovery after a stroke.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate differences in basic trunk control recovery between stroke patients with left versus right hemiparesis.
• To determine if hemiparesis side influences the extent of trunk control improvement post-stroke.

Main Methods:

• Prospective observational study of 94 stroke patients with loss of postural trunk control.
• Patients divided into left hemiparesis (Group A, n=48) and right hemiparesis (Group B, n=46).
• Trunk Control Test (TCT) and Functional Independence Measure (FIM) motor items assessed at admission and discharge.

Main Results:

• Both groups showed significant improvement in Trunk Control Test (TCT) scores (p < 0.0001).
• Patients with right hemiparesis (Group B) achieved significantly higher TCT scores at discharge compared to left hemiparesis (Group A) (p < 0.0001).
• No significant difference in functional independence (motFIM) was observed between groups at discharge.

Conclusions:

• The side of hemiparesis may influence the degree of basic trunk control recovery after stroke.
• Right hemiparesis appears to be associated with greater benefits in trunk control recovery than left hemiparesis.
• Improvements in basic trunk control did not directly lead to enhanced functional independence in this study.