The Effect of Prolonged Inpatient Rehabilitation Therapy in Subacute Stroke Patients

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of prolonged inpatient rehabilitation therapy in subacute stroke patients. METHOD We enrolled 52 subacute stroke patients who had received 3 months of inpatient rehabilitation therapy. Thirty stroke patients received additional inpatient rehabilitation therapy for 3 months and 22 control patients received only home-based care. The evaluation was measured at 3 and at 6 months after stroke occurrence. Functional improvement was measured using the modified motor assessment scale (MMAS), the timed up and go test (TUG), the 10-meter walking time (10 mWT), the Berg balance scale (BBS) and the Korean-modified Barthel index (K-MBI). The health-related quality of life was evaluated using the medical outcome study, 36-item short form survey (SF-36). RESULTS In the experimental group, significant improvements were observed for all parameters at 6 months (p<0.05). However, significant improvements were observed only in MMAS, BBS, and K-MBI at 6 months in the Control group (p<0.05). In comparing the 2 groups, significant difference were observed in all parameters (p<0.05) except 10 meter walking time (p=0.73). The improvement in SF-36 was meaningfully higher in experimental group compared to control group. CONCLUSION This study demonstrates that subacute stroke patients can achieve functional improvements and an enhanced quality of life through prolonged inpatient rehabilitation therapy.