Quantitative Assessment of Hand Function in Healthy Subjects and Post-Stroke Patients with the Action Research Arm Test

 

ABSOLUTELY USELESS! 'Assessments' do nothing for recovery because there are NO protocols mapped to fix the problems 'assessments' discovered! Does no one in stroke have two functioning neurons to rub together for ANY SPARK of intelligence?

Quantitative Assessment of Hand Function in Healthy Subjects and Post-Stroke Patients with the Action Research Arm Test

Jesus Fernando Padilla-Magaña 1,2, * , Esteban Peña-Pitarch 1 , Isahi Sánchez-Suarez 2 and Neus Ticó-Falguera 3 1 Escola Politècnica Superior d’Enginyeria de Manresa (EPSEM), Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), 08242 Manresa, Spain; esteban.pena@upc.edu 2 Department of Manufacturing Technologies, Polytechnic University of Uruapan Michoacán, Uruapan 60210, Michoacán, Mexico; i.sanchez@upu.edu.mx 3 Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service, Althaia Xarxa Assistencial de Manresa, 08243 Manresa, Spain; nico@althaia.cat * Correspondence: jesus.fernando.padilla@upc.edu; Tel.: +34-671251375 

Abstract: 

The Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) can provide subjective results(Objective results are needed if you want to have any hope of repeating your research.) due to the difficulty assessing abnormal patterns in stroke patients. The aim of this study was to identify joint impairments and compensatory grasping strategies in stroke patients with left (LH) and right (RH) hemiparesis. An experimental study was carried out with 12 patients six months after a stroke (three women and nine men, mean age: 65.2 ± 9.3 years), and 25 healthy subjects (14 women and 11 men, mean age: 40.2 ± 18.1 years. The subjects were evaluated during the performance of the ARAT using a data glove. Stroke patients with LH and RH showed significantly lower flexion angles in the MCP joints of the Index and Middle fingers than the Control group. However, RH patients showed larger flexion angles in the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints of the Index, Middle, Ring, and Little fingers. In contrast, LH patients showed larger flexion angles in the PIP joints of the Middle and Little fingers. Therefore, the results showed that RH and LH patients used compensatory strategies involving increased flexion at the PIP joints for decreased flexion in the MCP joints. The integration of a data glove during the performance of the ARAT allows the detection of finger joint impairments in stroke patients that are not visible from ARAT scores. Therefore, the results presented are of clinical relevance. (They may be of clinical relevance, but they are useless in getting survivors recovered unless you have EXACT REHAB PROTOCOLS to fix the disabilities found!)

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