Physical Activity Level Among Stroke Patients Hospitalized in a Rehabilitation Unit.

Background: The current literature contains little information about the level of physical activity of hospitalized patients who have had a stroke. Improving knowledge in the area could help optimize rehabilitation.

Objectives: To determine the level of physical activity of hospitalized patients who have had a stroke to discover if they achieved the recommended 30 minutes of physical activity per day (equivalent to 142 kcal) during sessions of 10 consecutive minutes.

Setting: Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine Unit of the Jean Rebeyrol Hospital, Limoges, France.

Participants: All patients (N = 88) who had sustained a stroke within the previous 6 months were included over a period of 7 months.

Main Outcome Measures: The duration of physical activity and related energy expenditure were estimated using a SenseWear armband (BodyMedia [Jawbone]). Subjects wore the sensor on the nonparetic arm for 2 consecutive days from 9 am to 4:30 pm, corresponding to the period spent daily on rehabilitation. The Fisher simple correlation test and Mann-Whitney nonparametric test were performed.

Results: A total of 88 patients aged 66 ± 17 years with a mean poststroke period of 43 ± 34 days and a mean Barthel Index of 61 ± 25/100 were enrolled in the study. Between 9 am and 4:30 pm, patients took part in an average of 23 ± 30 minutes of physical activity (equivalent to 91 ± 122 kcal). Correlations were found between physical activity time in the hospital and physical activity before the stroke occurred (r = 0.345, P < .0001), the Barthel Index (r = 0.284, P = .0002), body mass index (r = -0.440, P < .0001), and time to hospital release (r = -0.183, P = .0194).

Conclusion: It was found that 62% of patients did not achieve the recommended amount of physical activity. Sessions dedicated to physical activity could motivate patients who have had a stroke and help them meet recommendations before leaving the rehabilitation unit.