Article

Trunk control is thought to contribute to upper extremity (UE)
function. However, this common assumption in neurorehabilitation has not been
validated in clinical trials.
The study objectives were to investigate
the effect of providing external trunk support on trunk control and UE function
and to examine the relationship between trunk control and UE function in people
with chronic stroke and people who were healthy. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study
was conducted. METHODS: Twenty-five people with chronic stroke and 34 people who
were healthy and matched for age and sex were recruited. Trunk control was
assessed with the Trunk Impairment Scale (TIS), and UE impairment and UE function
were assessed with the UE subsection of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA-UE) and
the Streamlined Wolf Motor Function Test (SWMFT), respectively. The TIS and SWMFT
were evaluated, with and without external trunk support; the FMA-UE was evaluated
without trunk support. RESULTS: With trunk support, people with stroke showed
improvement from 18 to 20 points on the TIS, a reduction in SWMFT performance
times from 37.20 seconds to 35.37 seconds for the affected UE, and improvement
from 3.3 points to 3.4 points on the SWMFT Functional Ability Scale for the
function of the affected UE. With trunk support, the SWMFT performance time for
people who were healthy was reduced from 1.61 seconds to 1.48 seconds for the
dominant UE and from 1.71 seconds to 1.59 seconds for the nondominant UE. A
significant moderate correlation was found between the TIS and the FMA-UE (r=.53)
for people with stroke. LIMITATIONS: The limitations included a nonmasked
assessor and a standardized height of the external trunk support. CONCLUSIONS:
External trunk support improved trunk control in people with chronic stroke and
had a statistically significant effect on UE function in both people with chronic
stroke and people who were healthy. The findings suggest an association between
trunk control and the UE when external trunk support was provided and support the
hypothesis that lower trunk and lumbar stabilization provided by external support
enables an improvement in the ability to use the UE for functional activities.
CI - (c) 2015 American Physical Therapy Association.

Langue : ANGLAIS