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Updated: Aug 16, 2025

Determining the Functional Status of the Corticospinal Tract Within One Week of Stroke
Published on: February 22, 2020
Factors Associated With Time to Achieve Physical Functional Recovery in Patients With Severe Stroke After Inpatient
Reiko Yamaura1, Tetsuji Kaneko2,3, Koichi Benjamin Ishikawa1,4
1Graduate School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare, Tokyo, Japan.
Objective:
To describe characteristics of patient with severe stroke (FIM motor score [FIM motor] 20-49 at admission) and examine association between pre-specified factors (age, sex, modified Rankin Scale before stroke onset, body mass index, FIM motor, and FIM cognitive) and time to achieve FIM motor ≥70, that is, self-independent level.
Design:
Retrospective cohort study using a large database in Japan.
Setting:
Rehabilitation wards.
Participants:
Patients with severe stroke (N=1422) who received inpatient rehabilitation were included (median age: 76 years; interquartile range [IQR]: 68.0-84.0). A total of 54.6% were men, and 65.8% were ischemic stroke.
Interventions:
Not applicable.
Main Outcome Measures:
Time to achieve FIM motor ≥70.
Results:
After inpatient rehabilitation, 40.4% (N=575) achieved FIM motor ≥70 (admission FIM motor 20-29, 30-39 and 40-49: 18.6%, 33.6%, and 47.8%, respectively). Patients who achieved FIM motor ≥70 stayed median 81.0 days [IQR, 51.0-120.0]) and received median: 6.94 units per day [IQR, 5.48-7.78], 1 unit=20 minutes). Adjusted Fine-Gray regression revealed that shorter time to achieve FIM motor ≥70 was associated with higher admission FIM motor (hazard ratio [HR] 2.87 [95% confidence interval [CI] 2.27-3.62]: 20-29 vs 40-49), higher admission FIM cognitive (HR 1.81 [95% CI: 1.39-2.35]: 5-14 vs 25-35), and younger (HR 3.20 [95% CI: 2.32-4.42]: ≥85 years vs 20-69 years).
Conclusions:
Most patients with severe stroke did not achieve FIM motor ≥70 after inpatient rehabilitation. Older patients and patients with lower admission FIM motor require more attention. They should be prioritized for state-of-the-art rehabilitation therapy.

