Estimation of Prognosis for Walking Ability in Hemiplegic Patients after Stroke

Abstract

It has become one of the primary objectives of gait training program for hemiplegic patients after stroke to estimate the prognosis for walking ability. In the present study, we tried to estimate the walking ability on a flat road and the maximum walking speed after 3-month training using the data 2 weeks after hospitalization. Subjects were 52 patients with hemiplegia who had spent 1 year or less since onset and were expected to improve their walking ability. The estimation was made by the multivariate statistical analysis - Quantification analysis type I, and 6 related variables were selected; age, periods from the onset, Brunnstrom Recovery Stage (BRS), rising from a step, start step length, and abilities of perception and compensation. It was concluded that rising from a step, BRS and start step length exerted an influence on walking ability and maximal walking speed with a double correlation coefficient of 0.85.