Short-term and long-term effects of a progressive resistance and balance exercise program in individuals with chronic stroke: a randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: To evaluate the effects of progressive resistance and balance (PRB) exercises on physical and psychological functions of post-stroke individuals.

Materials And Methods: In a randomized controlled trial with follow-up at 3, 6 and 15 months, 67 community-living individuals (76% male; 65-85 years) with a stroke 1-3 years previously were allocated to an intervention group (IG, n = 34; PRB exercises combined with motivational group discussions twice weekly for 3 months) or a control group (CG, n = 33). The primary outcomes were balance (Berg Balance Scale, 0-56 points) and mobility (Short Physical Performance Battery, 0-12 points) at 3 months.

Body composition and physical function after progressive resistance and balance training among older adults after stroke: an exploratory randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: To evaluate whether improvements in physical function are related to changes in body composition after a three-month progressive resistance and balance exercise program among individuals approximately one to three years after stroke.

Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 43 community-dwelling subjects (65-85 years, mean age 73 ± 5 years, 73% men) were allocated to a progressive resistance and balance exercise program twice weekly for three months (intervention group [IG], n = 20) or a control group (n = 23). The main outcome measures were fat mass (kg) and fat-free mass (kg), as measured by bioelectrical impedance analyses (Tanita).

Functional performance, nutritional status, and body composition in ambulant community-dwelling individuals 1-3 years after suffering from a cerebral infarction or intracerebral bleeding.

Background: Muscle wasting and obesity may complicate the post-stroke trajectory. We investigated the relationships between nutritional status, body composition, and mobility one to 3 years after stroke.

Methods: Among 279 eligible home-dwelling individuals who had suffered a stroke (except for subarachnoid bleeding) 1-3 years earlier, 134 (74 ± 5 years, 69% men) were examined according to the Mini Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF, 0-14 points), including body mass index (BMI, kg/m(2)), body composition by bio-impedance analyses (Tanita BC-545), the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB, 0-12 points) combining walking speed, balance, and chair stand capacity, and the self-reported Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE).

Norwegian General Motor Function assessment as an outcome measure for a frail elderly population: A validity study.

Aim: To establish the validity of the Norwegian General Motor Function (NGMF) assessment scale.

Method: To establish construct and criteria validity, Spearman's rank correlation coefficients were calculated for the NGMF, and age, sex, medical conditions, history of falls and to four functional tests. Content validity was evaluated by asking participating physiotherapists about the usefulness of the items in the scale.

Physiotherapy and physical functioning post-stroke: exercise habits and functioning 4 years later? Long-term follow-up after a 1-year long-term intervention period: a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Physical activity is mandatory if patients are to remain healthy and independent after stroke.

Objective: Maintenance of motor function, tone, grip strength, balance, mobility, gait, independence in personal and instrumental activities of daily living, health-related quality-of-life and an active lifestyle 4 years post-stroke.

Methods: A prospective randomized controlled trial.

General motor function assessment scale--reliability of a Norwegian version.

Purpose: The General Motor Function assessment scale (GMF) measures activity-related dependence, pain and insecurity among older people in frail health. The aim of the present study was to translate the GMF into a Norwegian version (N-GMF) and establish its reliability and clinical feasibility.

Methods: The procedure used in translating the GMF was a forward and backward process, testing a convenience sample of 30 frail elderly people with it.

Factors related to performance-based mobility and self-reported physical activity in individuals 1-3 years after stroke: a cross-sectional cohort study.

Background: Low mobility and low level of physical activity is common after stroke. The objective of this study was to relate these outcomes to physical, psychological, and demographic determinants.

Methods: In this cross-sectional cohort study, a consecutive sample of 195 community-living individuals, 65-85 years of age (74±5 years, 71% men) with a previous stroke was included.

Validity and reliability of Polar® RS800CX heart rate monitor, measuring heart rate in dogs during standing position and at trot on a treadmill.

Unlabelled: The aim of the present study was to assess criterion validity, and relative and absolute reliability of Polar® RS800CX heart rate monitor, compared to simultaneously recorded electrocardiogram (ECG) data, in measuring heart rate of dogs during standing position and at trot on a treadmill.

Methods: Heart beats from Polar® RS800CX and Cardiostore ECG were recorded simultaneously during seven continuous minutes in standing position and at trot, in 10 adult healthy dogs. Polar® data was statistically compared to ECG data for a variety of mean beats per minute (BPM), standard deviation and confidence interval.

Self-Perceived non-motor aspects of cervical dystonia and their association with disability.

Objective: To examine the multivariate association between a model of self-perceived non-motor aspects and disability in cervical dystonia.

Design: A prospective and correlational design with two points of assessment.

Subjects: All 273 members with cervical dystonia from the Swedish Dystonia Patient Association were invited to participate.

Functional exercise and physical fitness post stroke: the importance of exercise maintenance for motor control and physical fitness after stroke.

It is argued that all stroke patients, indifferent of disability, have the same possibility to improve with training. The aim of the study was to follow and register functional improvements in two groups with different functional capacities at baseline for a period of 36 months. Stroke patients were recruited and divided into groups related to their functional status at baseline.

Responsiveness and validity of the Motor Activity Log in patients during the subacute phase after stroke.

Purpose: To investigate the responsiveness and cross-sectional and longitudinal validity of the Motor Activity Log (MAL) in the subacute phase after stroke.

Method: Data were collected pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at 3-month follow-up evaluations from 30 patients with stroke participating in a randomized trial of forced use. Assessments included MAL, the Fugl-Meyer test, the 16-hole peg test, grip strength, the Action Research Arm Test, and the Motor Assessment Scale.

Effects of forced use on arm function in the subacute phase after stroke: a randomized, clinical pilot study.

Background And Objective: Following stroke, it is common to exhibit motor impairments and decreased use of the upper limb. The objective of the present study was to evaluate forced use on arm function during the subacute phase after stroke.

Design: A comparison of standard rehabilitation only and standard rehabilitation together with a restraining sling was made through a randomized, nonblinded, clinical pilot trial with assessments before intervention, after intervention, and at 1- and 3-month follow-ups.

Is forced use of the paretic upper limb beneficial? A randomized pilot study during subacute post-stroke recovery.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of two weeks of forced use of the paretic upper limb, as a supplement to the rehabilitation programme in the subacute phase after stroke, on self-rated use of that limb.

Design: A randomized, non-blind, parallel group, clinical, before-and-after trial. A forced use group and a conventional group were followed up one and three months after intervention.

An evaluation of two different exercise regimes during the first year following stroke: a randomised controlled trial.

The purpose of this randomised controlled trial was to evaluate the effects of two different exercise approaches during the first 12 months post stroke on Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL), motor function, gait performance, balance, grip strength, and muscle tone. This study is a double-blind longitudinal randomised trial of first-time-ever stroke patients. Seventy-five patients were included: 35 in an intervention group and 40 in a self-initiated exercise group.

Tibolone low dose (1.25 mg/d) therapy and postural balance in elderly women.

Unlabelled: Most hip fractures occur in subjects without osteoporosis and are associated with a fall. Conventional menopausal hormone therapy (HT) improves postural balance, which might explain the rapid reduction in hip fracture risk. It is unclear whether tibolone improves postural balance, which might determine its effects on peripheral fracture risk.

Physiotherapy in cervical dystonia: six experimental single-case studies.

The aim of the study was to explore the outcome of a physiotherapy program targeted to improve the quality of life of people with cervical dystonia (CD) by reducing pain, improving awareness of postural orientation, increasing muscle strength, and reducing the effort of moving the head and neck. In six single case studies, the primary outcome measure for each case was the Cervical Dystonia Questionnaire (CDQ) to measure the impact of the program on the individuals' quality of life. Secondary outcome measures were identified for the different components of the physiotherapy program: Visual Analogue Scale (pain); Postural Orientation Index (postural orientation awareness); and Movement Energy Index (effort of moving head and neck).

Exercise and health-related quality of life during the first year following acute stroke. A randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: To evaluate the impact of two different physiotherapy exercise regimes in patients after acute stroke on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and to investigate how the degree of motor and balance function, gait capacity, activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living influenced HRQoL.

Methods: A longitudinal randomized controlled stratified trial of two interventions: the intensive exercise groups with scheduled intensive training during four periods of the first year after stroke and the regular exercise group with self-initiated training.

Results: There was a tendency of better HRQoL in the regular exercise group on NHP total score (p = 0.

Correlation between clinical assessment and force plate measurement of postural control after stroke.

Objectives: To explore the correlation between clinical assessment and force plate measurement of postural control after stroke when selected balance tasks are performed under similar spatial and temporal conditions, and to examine the inter-rater agreement of assessment of weight distribution during quiet stance in subjects with stroke.

Design: A descriptive and correlational study.

Methods: Clinical assessment of postural control using Berg Balance Scale, video recording for rating of weight distribution, and force plate measurement with the Vifor-system, were performed in 20 subjects with stroke.

Stroke patients and long-term training: is it worthwhile? A randomized comparison of two different training strategies after rehabilitation.

Objective: To find out if there were any differences in improvement and maintenance of motor function, activity of daily living and grip strength between patients with first-ever stroke receiving two different strategies of physical exercise during the first year after stroke.

Design: A longitudinal randomized controlled stratified trial.

Setting: Rehabilitation institutions, community, patients' homes and nursing homes.

Hormone therapy and postural balance in elderly women.

Objective: Most fractures occur in elderly individuals without osteoporosis, and more than 90% of all hip fractures are associated with a fall. It is unclear whether hormone therapy (HT) can improve postural balance when initiated in elderly women and the effect of endogenous estradiol (E2) levels.

Design: Forty healthy women (33 assessable), age 60 years or older, were recruited through advertising in the local media.

Early postmenopausal hormone therapy improves postural balance.

Objective: Postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) results in more substantial reductions in the risk of hip fracture when initiated sooner rather than later after menopause. We studied the effects of postmenopausal HT on the postural balance of postmenopausal women, with further assessment according to the time since they achieved menopause.

Design: One hundred women with a mean age of 52.

Deep-breathing exercises reduce atelectasis and improve pulmonary function after coronary artery bypass surgery.

Study Objectives: To investigate the effects of deep-breathing exercises on pulmonary function, atelectasis, and arterial blood gas levels after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.

Design, Setting, And Patients: In a prospective, randomized trial, patients performing deep-breathing exercises (n = 48) were compared to a control group (n = 42) who performed no breathing exercises postoperatively. Patient management was similar in the groups in terms of assessment, positioning, and mobility.

The immediate effects of deep breathing exercises on atelectasis and oxygenation after cardiac surgery.

Objective--To investigate the effects of deep breathing performed on the second postoperative day after coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Design--The immediate effects of 30 deep breaths performed without a mechanical device (n = 21), with a blow bottle device (n = 20) and with an inspiratory resistance-positive expiratory pressure mask (n = 20) were studied. Spiral computed tomography and arterial blood gas analyses were performed immediately before and after the intervention.

Self-efficacy in relation to impairments and activities of daily living disability in elderly patients with stroke: a prospective investigation.

Objectives: The objectives of this prospective study, undertaken in elderly patients with stroke undergoing rehabilitation, were to determine to what extent fall-related self-efficacy changes over time, its relationships to objectively assessed functions and activities, and the predictive capacity of self-efficacy at discharge for activities of daily living 10 months after stroke.

Methods: The study comprised 37 patients, aged 66-89 years. Main outcome measurement instruments were the Falls Efficacy Scale (Swedish version), Berg Balance Scale and Functional Independence Measure.

Test-retest intra-rater reliability of grip force in patients with stroke.

Objective: Coefficients of repeatability and reproducibility can be guides in differentiating between real changes and measurement error. The aim was to evaluate test-retest intra-rater reliability of a clinical procedure measuring grip force with Grippit in stroke patients, to assess relationship between grip force of the hands and between sustained and peak grip force.

Patients And Methods: Eighteen patients were tested using the Grippit at two occasions one hour apart.