Therapy For Stroke Patients Improves Quality Of Life

Have you or a loved one recently suffered a stroke? Are you looking for information about therapy for stroke patients that improves the survivor's quality of life? Then this article is for you. This article discusses the results of a recently-released clinical study that analyzes the quality of life change associated with robotic-assisted therapy for stroke patients. This article will specifically focus on robotic-assisted therapy to improve stroke survivors' hand motor functions.

In the United States approximately 800,000 individuals experience a stroke each year and roughly two-thirds of these people survive and could benefit from effective stroke treatment. The goal of this therapy is to help stroke survivors regain function and become as independent as possible. Even though post-stroke therapy does not "cure" the survivor in that it does not reverse the damage to the brain, therapy can help survivors achieve the best-possible long-term outcome.

According to a recent clinical trial, at 6 months post-stroke, a majority of survivors cannot properly incorporate their affected hand into their daily activities. This is most likely going to reduce the survivor's perceived quality of life.

The preliminary study for this clinical trial examined changes in patient-reported, health-related quality of life resulting from robotic-assisted therapy for stroke patients combined with reduced therapist-supervised training. Following the preliminary study, a single blind, randomized clinical trial was conducted to study how robotic-assisted therapy for stroke patients improved quality of life.

The clinical trial followed seventeen individuals who were between 3 and 9 months post-stroke. These individuals then participated in an intense therapy for stroke patients in which some survivors participated in sixty hours of therapist-supervised repetitive task practice (RTP) while others participated in 30 hours of robotic-assisted therapy combined with 30 hours of RTP. These individuals were assessed using the Stroke Impact Scale (SIS) at baseline, immediately following intervention and 2 months following the intervention. Changes in these scores were assessed in a mixed model analysis.

Results
According to the clinical trial, the combined therapy group experienced a greater increase in mood rating from pre-intervention to post-intervention, while the RTP-only group experienced a greater increase in social participation ratings from pre-intervention to post-intervention. Both study groups showed significant statistical improvements in daily living activities and instrumental activities of daily living scores. Both groups also reported significant improvement in hand function post-intervention and at follow-up and the magnitude of these changes suggest clinical significance. The combined therapy group experienced significant improvements in recovery ratings post-intervention as well as at follow-up, which also appeared clinically significant. The RTP-only group also experienced improvements in stroke recovery rating between pre-intervention to follow-up.

This clinical trial was limited because outcomes of 30 hours of repetitive task practice in the absence of robotic-assisted therapy remains unknown. However, the therapy for stroke patients' clinical trial concluded that robotic-assisted therapy for stroke patients may be an effective alternative to the delivery of intensive task practice interventions for enhancing foot and hand function recovery in patients who have experienced strokes.