Effect of Dominant Hand Paralysis on Quality of Life in Patients With Subacute Stroke

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the degree to which the paralysis of a dominant hand affects quality of life (QOL) in patients with subacute stroke. METHODS We recruited 75 patients with subacute hemiplegic stroke. Patients were divided into two groups according to the location of the lesion and the side of the dominant hand. Group 1 consisted of patients whose strokes affected the dominant hand (i.e., right hemiplegia and right dominant hand or left hemiplegia and left dominant hand). Group 2 consisted of patients whose strokes affected the non-dominant hand (i.e., left hemiplegia and right dominant hand or right hemiplegia and left dominant hand). The primary outcome measure was the Short-Form 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36), which was used to evaluate health-related QOL. Secondary outcomes were scores on the Modified Barthel Index (MBI) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS We did not find any statistically significant differences between the groups in any SF-36 domain including the summaries of physical and mental component. Similarly, the MBI and BDI scores were not significantly different between the groups. CONCLUSION The effect of paralysis on the dominant hand and QOL in patients with subacute stroke was not significantly different from the effect of paralysis on the non-dominant hand.