|
Motor disorders conditioned by acute disturbance of brain circulation represent
the most frequent cause of severe disability. It has been suggested, that since
active repetitive exercise facilitates restoration of motor function, repetitive
movements induced by neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) could be
successfully used for this purpose. We studied 36 acute stroke patients with
various degrees of motor deficiency (hemiparesis, hemiplegia). 16 patients were
treated following standard rehabilitation protocol. 20 patients underwent daily
NMES treatment along with standard rehabilitation regimen. Motor performance was
evaluated at admission and at the end of acute phase. Muscular strength was
evaluated with Motricity Index (MI). Range of motion (ROM) was assessed
according to Norkin and White system. In case of MI, improvement was more
prominent in NMES group, compared with control group (p<0.05). Small but
statistically significant increase of ROM was noted in both groups, although,
there was no statistically significant difference observed between the groups.
Obtained results support the view that the use of NMES contributes to the
improvement of motor performance in post-stroke patients.
Keywords:
stroke, hemiparesis, motricity index,
range of motion, neuromuscular electrical stimulation
|
