Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2013 , Vol 59 , Num 2

The Impact of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction on Measures of Stroke Rehabilitation Outcome

Şehri Ayaş 1 ,Selin Taflan Selçuk 2 ,Melek Zekiye Uluçam 3
1 Başkent Üniversitesi, Tıp Fakültesi, Fiziksel Tıp ve Rehabilitasyon Anabilim Dalı, Ankara, Türkiye
2 Dr. Abdurrahman Yurtaslan Ankara Onkoloji Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Ankara, Türkiye**Başkent Üniversitesi, Tıp Fakültesi, Kardiyoloji Anabilim Dalı, Ankara, Türkiye
3 Başkent Üniversitesi, Tıp Fakültesi, Kardiyoloji Anabilim Dalı, Ankara, Türkiye
DOI : 10.4274/tftr.26879

Objective: To evaluate the impact of left ventricular ejection fraction on stroke rehabilitation outcome measures.

 

Materials and Methods: Forty first-ever stroke patients admitted to the inpatient rehabilitation unit at a tertiary research hospital were enrolled in the study. On the basis of the left ventricular ejection fraction, the patients were grouped into two groups: (1) those with low ejection fractions (ejection fraction ≤50%) and (2) those with high ejection fractions (ejection fraction >50%). Thirteen patients had low ejection fraction and 27 had high ejection fraction. Admission and discharge functional status was measured with total, motor and cognitive components of the Functional Independence MeasureTM (FIM). A Functional Ambulatory Scale was used to measure the ambulatory status of the patients upon discharge.

 

Results: The admission total, motor and cognitive FIM scores in both groups were not significantly different. However, the low ejection fraction group had significantly lower discharge motor, total FIM and functional ambulatory scores than did the high ejection fraction group.

 

Conclusion: A decreased left ventricular ejection fraction may impair walking ability and rehabilitation outcome in first-ever stroke patients.

Keywords : Ejection fraction, stroke, rehabilitatio