Spasticity and contracture are major sources of disability in people with neurological impairments that have been evaluated using various instruments: the Modified Ashworth Scale, tendon reflex scale, pendulum test, mechanical perturbations, and passive joint range of motion (ROM). These measures generally are either convenient to use in clinics but not quantitative or they are quantitative but...

This was a prospective, repeat-treatment, open-label study (NCT01251380) of abobotulinumtoxinA for the management of lower limb spasticity in children who had completed a double-blind study. Children (2-17 years) received injections into the gastrocnemius-soleus complex, and other distal and proximal muscles as required (maximum total dose per injection cycle: 30 U/kg or 1000U). A total of 216 ...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the reliability of a new scale, the Triple Spasticity Scale (TSS), for assessing spasticity in stroke, through measurement of affected elbow flexors and ankle plantar flexors of hemiplegic patients with stroke, and to compare the new scale with commonly used scales. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Inpatients at a rehabilitation hospital. PATIENTS Seventy-one i...

Caregivers of persons with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) often describe the quality of the daily movements of these persons in terms of flexibility or stiffness. Objective outcome measures for flexibility and stiffness are muscle tone or level of spasticity. Two instruments used to grade muscle tone and spasticity are the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and the Modified T...

OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of soft splints on spasticity and hand opening in chronic patients with upper limb spasticity and disorders of consciousness (vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome-VS/UWS and minimally conscious state-MCS). METHODS In this prospective single-blind controlled trial, a blind evaluator assessed spasticity (Modified Ashworth Scale and Modified Ta...

OBJECTIVE To compare the effect of extracorporeal shock-wave therapy (ESWT) applied at the muscle belly and myotendinous junction on spasticity in the upper and lower limbs of chronic stroke patients. METHODS Of the 151 patients, a total of 80 patients with stroke-induced spasticity on the elbow flexor and 44 patients on the knee flexor were enrolled for a prospective, randomized clinical tri...

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate feasibility of an assessment protocol for a trial of post-Botox casting to treat equinus gait in cerebral palsy. METHODS Ten children (ages, 26-75 months) were recruited. Nine were assessed 1 week before botulinum toxin-A injections and reassessed 1 week after removal of the final cast. The assessment protocol included Modified Ashworth Sca...

PURPOSE This study used ultrasonography (US) to investigate the architectural changes in gastrocnemius muscles (GCM) after botulinum toxin injection (BoNT-A) in children with cerebral palsy (CP). MATERIALS AND METHODS Thirteen children with CP who received a BoNT-A injection into their GCM to treat equinus were recruited (9 males and 4 females). Architectural changes in both the medial and la...