Comparison of Functional Electrical Stimulation Cycle vs. Conservative Rehabilitation on Functional Status and Muscle...

BackgroundFunctional Electrical Stimulation (FES) Cycle is used in the rehabilitation of stroke.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to investigate the effects of CR and FES cycle therapy on the functional status and muscle features in stroke patientsMethodsThe 1st Group(n = 15) received only CR for 6 weeks, and the 2nd Group(n = 15) received FES cycle 3 days a week for 4 weeks in addition to the CR treatment. Brunnstrom recovery staging(BRS), Fugl-Meyer lower extremity evaluation(FME); Berg Balance Scale(BBS), Functional Ambulation Classification(FAC), Barthel Index(BI), Fatigue Severity Scale(FSS), 6 min walk test(6mWT), knee extensor and knee flexor muscle strengths(KEMS, KFMS) in both groups were assessed before and after treatment(6th week). Pennate angle(PA) and rectus femoris muscle thickness(RFT) were measured.ResultsSignificant improvement was detected in BBS, FAS, BI, FME, 6mWT, KEMS, RFT scores after intra-group treatment compared to before treatment in both groups. Only the 2nd Group showed a significant difference in KFMS, FSS, BRS lower extremity, PA values after treatment compared to before. No significant superiority of the groups over each other was detected.ConclusionsCR and FES Cycle contribute to the improvement of the functional status of the patients, but their superiority over each other was not observed.