Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1993 Mar;56(3):241–244. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.56.3.241

A controlled trial of the retraining of the sensory function of the hand in stroke patients.

M Yekutiel 1, E Guttman 1
PMCID: PMC1014854  PMID: 8459238

Abstract

A controlled trial of retraining of the sensory function of the hand was undertaken in hemiplegic patients after the period of spontaneous recovery. Twenty hemiplegic patients with sensory deficit in the hand, two or more years after stroke, received systematic retraining three times a week for six weeks. Sensation in the plegic hand was tested before and after this period in these patients and in 19 untreated control patients. The treated group showed large and significant gains on all sensory tests (P < 0.001), while no change occurred in the control group. It is concluded that somatosensory deficit can be alleviated even years after stroke and that rehabilitation for stroke patients should include sensory retraining for those with sensory deficit.

Full text

PDF
241

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Anderson E. K. Sensory impairments in hemiplegia. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1971 Jul;52(7):293–297. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bach-y-Rita P. Brain plasticity as a basis of the development of rehabilitation procedures for hemiplegia. Scand J Rehabil Med. 1981;13(2-3):73–83. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Brocklehurst J. C., Andrews K., Richards B., Laycock P. J. How much physical therapy for patients with stroke? Br Med J. 1978 May 20;1(6123):1307–1310. doi: 10.1136/bmj.1.6123.1307. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Dannenbaum R. M., Dykes R. W. Sensory loss in the hand after sensory stroke: therapeutic rationale. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1988 Oct;69(10):833–839. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Dickstein R., Hocherman S., Pillar T., Shaham R. Stroke rehabilitation. Three exercise therapy approaches. Phys Ther. 1986 Aug;66(8):1233–1238. doi: 10.1093/ptj/66.8.1233. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. FORSTER F. M., SHIELDS C. D. Cortical sensory defects causing disability. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1959 Feb;40(2):56–61. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Goldman H. Improvement of double simultaneous stimulation perception in hemiplegic patients. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1966 Oct;47(10):681–687. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Lehmann J. F., DeLateur B. J., Fowler R. S., Jr, Warren C. G., Arnhold R., Schertzer G., Hurka R., Whitmore J. J., Masock A. J., Chambers K. H. Stroke: Does rehabilitation affect outcome? Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1975 Sep;56(9):375–382. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Logigian M. K., Samuels M. A., Falconer J., Zagar R. Clinical exercise trial for stroke patients. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1983 Aug;64(8):364–367. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Lord J. P., Hall K. Neuromuscular reeducation versus traditional programs for stroke rehabilitation. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1986 Feb;67(2):88–91. doi: 10.1016/0003-9993(86)90108-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. MOBERG E. Criticism and study of methods for examining sensibility in the hand. Neurology. 1962 Jan;12:8–19. doi: 10.1212/wnl.12.1.8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Olsen T. S. Arm and leg paresis as outcome predictors in stroke rehabilitation. Stroke. 1990 Feb;21(2):247–251. doi: 10.1161/01.str.21.2.247. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Parry C. B., Salter M. Sensory re-education after median nerve lesions. Hand. 1976 Oct;8(3):250–257. doi: 10.1016/0072-968x(76)90010-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Prescott R. J., Garraway W. M., Akhtar A. J. Predicting functional outcome following acute stroke using a standard clinical examination. Stroke. 1982 Sep-Oct;13(5):641–647. doi: 10.1161/01.str.13.5.641. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Smith D. L., Akhtar A. J., Garraway W. M. Proprioception and spatial neglect after stroke. Age Ageing. 1983 Feb;12(1):63–69. doi: 10.1093/ageing/12.1.63. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Tangeman P. T., Banaitis D. A., Williams A. K. Rehabilitation of chronic stroke patients: changes in functional performance. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1990 Oct;71(11):876–880. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. VAN BUSKIRK C., WEBSTER D. Prognostic value of sensory defect in rehabilitation of hemiplegics. Neurology. 1955 Jun;5(6):407–411. doi: 10.1212/wnl.5.6.407. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Wade D. T., Langton-Hewer R., Wood V. A., Skilbeck C. E., Ismail H. M. The hemiplegic arm after stroke: measurement and recovery. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1983 Jun;46(6):521–524. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.46.6.521. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Weinberg J., Diller L., Gordon W. A., Gerstman L. J., Lieberman A., Lakin P., Hodges G., Ezrachi O. Training sensory awareness and spatial organization in people with right brain damage. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1979 Nov;60(11):491–496. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Zeman B. D., Yiannikas C. Functional prognosis in stroke: use of somatosensory evoked potentials. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1989 Feb;52(2):242–247. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.52.2.242. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES