Relationship between arm usage and instrumental activities of daily living after unilateral stroke

I don't know what this means but your doctor/therapist will.
http://search.naric.com/research/rehab/redesign_record.cfm?search=2&type=all&criteria=J64922&phrase=no&rec=120156
Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation , Volume 93(11) , Pgs. 1957-1962.

NARIC Accession Number: J64922.  What's this?
ISSN: 0003-9993.
Author(s): Haaland, Kathleen Y.; Mutha, Pratik K.; Rinehart, Jenny K.; Daniels, Melissa; Cushnyr, Brad; Adair, John C..
Publication Year: 2012.
Number of Pages: 6.
Abstract: Study investigated whether the preferred pattern of arm use after unilateral hemispheric damage was associated with better functional performance on everyday tasks. A previous study showed that right-handed stroke patients with right hemisphere damage (RHD) used their right, ipsilesional arm most frequently, while those with left hemisphere damage (LHD) used both arms together most frequently. This effect was explained by right-hand preference, but its relationship to functional performance is not known. In this study, the Functional Impact Assessment was used to assess performance on instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) in 60 patients (30 RHD and 30 LHD) and 52 healthy controls. Results showed that the preferred patterns of arm use were similar to those in the previous study. However, it was the greater use of both arms together that was associated with better IADL performance in both stroke groups. Ipsilesional arm use alone was not significantly associated with IADL performance in the RHD group and was associated with poorer performance in the LHD group. An important practical question that arises from these findings is whether bilateral arm rehabilitation should be emphasized, because using both arms together is the best predictor of better performance on everyday tasks.