Post-stroke fatigue: how it relates to motor fatigability and other modifiable factors in people with chronic stroke

Post-stroke fatigue (PSF) is a common symptom associated with disability and decreased quality of life. Distinction can be made between perceived fatigue and fatigability. The first aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of perceived fatigue and fatigability amongst patients with chronic stroke and to explore how these two parameters relate. The second aim was to study the relationship between modifiable factors (sleep disorders, anxiety, depression and activities of daily living) and fatigue in this population. Sixty-two patients with chronic stroke (> 6 months) were included. Perceived fatigue was evaluated using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Motor fatigability was assessed with the percent change in meters walked from first to last minute of the 6-min Walk Test and an isometric muscular fatigability test. Subjects also completed self-report questionnaires assessing anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-HADS), sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index-PSQI) and activity limitations (ACTIVLIM-stroke). Seventy-one percent of participants presented PSF. There was no correlation between the FSS and motor fatigability. FSS significantly correlated with HADS-Anxiety (ρ = 0.53, P < 0.001), HADS-depression (ρ = 0.63, P < 0.001), PSQI (ρ = 0.51, P < 0.001) and ACTIVLIM (ρ = - 0.30, P < 0.05). A linear regression model showed that the HADS-Depression, the PSQI and the ACTIVLIM explained 46% of the variance of the FSS. A high proportion of chronic stroke patients presents PSF, with no relation between their fatigue and fatigability. Perceived fatigue is associated with potentially modifiable factors: anxious and depressive symptoms, poor sleep quality and activity limitations. Registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04277234) (21/02/2019).