Increasing the amount of usual rehabilitation improves activity after stroke: a systematic review

Emma J Schneider; Natasha A Lannin; Louise Ada; Julia Schmidt

doi:10.1016/j.jphys.2016.08.006

Increasing the amount of usual rehabilitation improves activity after stroke: a systematic review

J Physiother. 2016 Oct;62(4):182-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jphys.2016.08.006. Epub 2016 Aug 24.

Authors

Emma J Schneider¹, Natasha A Lannin², Louise Ada³, Julia Schmidt⁴

Affiliations

¹ Discipline of Occupational Therapy, School of Allied Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University; Occupational Therapy Department, Alfred Health, Melbourne.
² Discipline of Occupational Therapy, School of Allied Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University; Occupational Therapy Department, Alfred Health, Melbourne; John Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research, Sydney Medical School (Northern), The University of Sydney.
³ Discipline of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
⁴ Discipline of Occupational Therapy, School of Allied Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University; Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC, Canada.

PMID: 27637769
DOI: 10.1016/j.jphys.2016.08.006

Abstract

Questions: In people receiving rehabilitation aimed at reducing activity limitations of the lower and/or upper limb after stroke, does adding extra rehabilitation (of the same content as the usual rehabilitation) improve activity? What is the amount of extra rehabilitation that needs to be provided to achieve a beneficial effect?

Design: Systematic review with meta-analysis of randomised trials.

Participants: Adults aged 18 years or older that had a diagnosis of stroke.

Intervention: Extra rehabilitation with the same content as usual rehabilitation aimed at reducing activity limitations of the lower and/or upper limb.

Outcome measures: Activity measured as lower or upper limb ability.

Results: A total of 14 studies, comprising 15 comparisons, met the inclusion criteria. Pooling data from all the included studies showed that extra rehabilitation improved activity immediately after the intervention period (SMD=0.39, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.71, I(2)=66%). When only studies with a large increase in rehabilitation (> 100%) were included, the effect was greater (SMD 0.59, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.94, I(2)=44%). There was a trend towards a positive relationship (r=0.53, p=0.09) between extra rehabilitation and improved activity. The turning point on the ROC curve of false versus true benefit (AUC=0.88, p=0.04) indicated that at least an extra 240% of rehabilitation was needed for significant likelihood that extra rehabilitation would improve activity.

Conclusion: Increasing the amount of usual rehabilitation aimed at reducing activity limitations improves activity in people after stroke. The amount of extra rehabilitation that needs to be provided to achieve a beneficial effect is large.

Trial registration: PROSPERO CRD42012003221. [Schneider EJ, Lannin NA, Ada L, Schmidt J (2016) Increasing the amount of usual rehabilitation improves activity after stroke: a systematic review.Journal of Physiotherapy62: 182-187].

Keywords: Occupational therapy; Physical therapy modalities; Rehabilitation; Review; Stroke.

Publication types

Review
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Activities of Daily Living*
Humans
Recovery of Function*
Stroke Rehabilitation / methods*
Treatment Outcome