Functional and locomotive characteristics of stroke survivors in Japanese community-based rehabilitation

Objective: The purposes of this study were as follows: (1) to compare the characteristics of functional fitness of Japanese stroke survivors with those of control subjects of a similar age; and (2) to relate these characteristics to the extent of physical impairment and the period after stroke onset to better design community-based rehabilitation programs for stroke survivors. Design: One hundred fifty-three stroke survivors who participated in community-based rehabilitation and 119 control subjects were measured. Twelve performance test items were designed to assess functional fitness. Results: The average functional fitness score for the stroke survivors was significantly lower than that of the control group. However, some survivors had higher performance scores than the control group. Significant correlations were shown between some functional fitness items and Brunnstrom recovery stage in the stroke survivors. Conclusion: The large variability in functional fitness scores for stroke survivors indicates a need to design variable rehabilitation programs so that survivors can be grouped according to their specific levels of functional fitness.