Effects of extracorporeal shock wave therapy combined with isokinetic strength training on spastic calf triceps in patients after a stroke: a double-blinded randomised controlled trial.

Objectives: To evaluate the antitetanic effects of extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) combined with isokinetic strength training (IST) on calf triceps spasm in patients after a stroke.

Methods: Forty-five patients with hemiplegia after a stroke and lower extremity spasms were randomly assigned into three groups: a control group (  = 15), an ESWT group (  = 15) and an ESWT+IST group (  = 15). All patients agreed to conventional rehabilitation therapy, while the ESWT and ESWT+IST groups received ESWT of 2.0-3.0 bar once a week for four weeks. In addition, the ESWT+IST group underwent four weeks of ankle IST. All groups were assessed using the modified Ashworth scale (MAS) and surface electromyography before and after four weeks of treatment. The ankle passive movement of all groups was measured using the BIODEX isokinetic system at angular velocities of 60°/s, 120°/s, 180°/s and 240°/s.

Results: After four weeks of treatment, compared with the control group, the ESWT+IST groups showed a significant reduction in MASscores ( = 0.030). The ESWT+IST group had significantly lower MAS scores than the baseline ( = 0.002), while the ESWT group did not show a significant difference ( = 0.072). The average electromyography (AEMG) analysis demonstrated a significant difference among the groups after four weeks ( = 0.001), with the ESWT+IST group having lower AEMG values compared with the control group (  < 0.001) and the ESWT group ( = 0.042). Peak resistive torque significantly decreased in both the ESWT and ESWT+IST groups at all velocities (60°/s:  = 0.030, 120°/s:  = 0.039, 180°/s:  = 0.030 and 240°/s:  = 0.042).

Conclusions: Extracorporeal shock wave therapy combined with IST can significantly improve calf triceps spasm in patients after a stroke.