[P3-0804] Immediate effects of a 10 min walk in poststroke patients with spastic hemiparesis
Keywords:Stroke, Spasticity, Walk
Spasticity is a major disabling symptom in stroke patients. Clinically, one of the goals of management of stroke patients is the reduction of this spasticity. Based on the latest evidences concerning a motor recovery mechanism after a stroke, we hypothesized that a 10 min walk stimulates the motor cortices and modifies the spasticity of the affected extremities in stroke patients. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the immediate effects of a 10 min walk on spasticity of the affected extremities in stroke patients.
Twenty chronic stroke patients with hemiparesis（62±2 years, mean±SE）were the subjects of this study. Modified Ashworth Scale（MAS）was evaluated before and after a 10 min walk. Specifically, patients sat for 10 minutes initially, and then walked for 10 minutes. Immediately after the walk, they were made to sit and the MAS was evaluated.
The latency between the onset of stroke and the study was 51.2±11.2 months. After a 10 min walk, a significant decrease in spasticity of the affected extremities was noted in the flexor muscles of the upper extremities and knee extensors（Wilcoxon signed-ranks test, p＜0.05）；the MAS scores（mean±SE）before and after a 10 min walk were 1.9±0.2 and 1.5±0.2 in the elbow（flexor）, 1.5±0.2 and 1.2±0.2 in the wrist（flexor）, 2.0±0.3 and 1.5±0.3 in the fingers（flexor）, and 0.9±0.2 and 0.5±0.1 in the knee（extensor）, respectively.
A 10 min walk significantly decreased spasticity of the affected extremities in stroke patients. Further studies are needed to clarify the mechanism of such improvements.