Functional Electrical Stimulation Enhancement of Upper Extremity Functional Recovery During Stroke Rehabilitation: A Pilot Study

¹ Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Maryland, School of Medicine
² Department of Medicine, University of Maryland, School of Medicine

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: GAlon{at}som.umaryland.edu.

	Abstract

Objective. To test if functional electrical stimulation (FES) can enhance the recovery of upper extremity function during early stroke rehabilitation. Methods. Open-label block-randomized trial, begun during inpatient rehabilitation and continued at the patients’ home. Patients were assigned to either FES combined with task-specific upper extremity rehabilitation (n =7) or a control group that received task-specific therapy alone (n = 8) over 12 weeks. Outcome measures. Hand function (Box & Blocks, B&B; Jebsen-Taylor light object lift, J-T) and motor control (modified Fugl-Meyer, mF-M) were video-recorded for both upper extremities at baseline, 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Results. B&B mean score at 12 weeks favored (P = .049) the FES group (42.3 ±16.6 blocks) over the control group (26.3 ±11.0 blocks). The FES group J-T task was 6.7 ± 2.9 seconds and faster (P = .049) than the 11.8 ± 5.4 seconds of the control group. Mean mF-M score of the FES group at 12 weeks was 49.3 ±5.1 points out of 54, compared to the control group that scored 40.6 ± 8.2 points (P =.042). All patients regained hand function. Conclusion. Upper extremity task-oriented training that begins soon after stroke that incorporates FES may improve upper extremity functional use in patients with mild/moderate paresis more than task-oriented training without FES.

First published on March 16, 2007, doi:10.1177/1545968306297871

Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair 2007;21:207.

A more recent version of this article appeared on May 1, 2007


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