The prevalence and magnitude of impaired cutaneous sensation across the hand in the chronic period post-stroke.

Sensation is commonly impaired immediately post-stroke but little is known about the long-term changes in cutaneous sensation that have the capacity to adversely impact independence and motor-function. We investigated cutaneous sensory thresholds across the hand in the chronic post-stroke period. Cutaneous sensation was assessed in 42 community-dwelling stroke patients and compared to 36 healthy subjects.

Two common tests of dexterity can stratify upper limb motor function after stroke.

Background: Neurological deficits after a stroke are commonly classified according to motor function for clinical decision making regarding discharge and rehabilitation. Participants in clinical stroke studies are also stratified by motor function to avoid a sampling bias.

Objective: This post hoc analysis examined a suite of upper limb functional assessment tools to test the hypothesis that motor function of survivors of stroke can be stratified using 2 simple tests of manual dexterity despite the heterogeneity of the population.