The application of partial body weight support treadmill training in hemiplegia rehabilitation after stroke / 中国脑血管病杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective: To explore the influence of early partial body weight support treadmill training (PBWSTT) on motor function of lower extremities, walking ability and activities of daily living (ADL) in patients with hemiplegia after stroke. Methods: One hundred twenty-eight patients with stable stroke (hemiplegic limbs Brunstrom's scale ≥ II) within 3 months after the onset were enrolled in the study. They were randomly allocated into PBWSTT group (n = 67) and control group (n = 61). Conventional treatment techniques were used in rehabilitation training in the control group, and the PBWSTT group received PBWSTT in addition to the same training in the control group. The Functional Ambulation Category (FAC) scale, Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) scale and the Functional Independence Measurement (FIM) scale were used to assess the walking ability, motor function of lower extremities, and ADL 4 weeks before and after the treatment in both groups. Results: The FAC, FMA and FIM scores were 0.42 ± 0.23, 17.1 ± 5.2 and 35.3 ± 3.8, respectively before the treatment; and they were 2.5 ± 1.3 23.6 ± 7.3 and 67.9 ± 9.2, respectively after the treatment in the control group, there were significant difference between them (P < 0.05). The FAC, FMA and FIM scores were 0.36 ± 0.13, 16.7 ± 6.2 and 35.1 ± 3.4, respectively before the treatment; and they were 3.8 ± 1.4, 39.3 ± 7.6, and 90.1 ± 10.0, respectively after the treatment in the PBWSTT group. There were significant differences before and after the treatment (P < 0.01). The FAC score versus FMA score in both groups were P < 0.01, and the FIM score was P < 0.05 after the treatment. The patients who could walk independently were 42.6% and 55.7% (P < 0.05) in the control group, and were 32.8% and 83.5% (P < 0.01) in the PBWSTT group before and after the treatment. There were significant differences between the control group and the PBWSTT group after the treatment (P < 0.05). Conclusion: On the basis of conventional rehabilitation training, early PBWSTT may improve the motor function of lower extremities, walking ability, and ADL more significantly in stroke patients with hemiplegia.