Efficacy of Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy for Spasticity of Ankle Plantar Flexor Muscles in Stroke Patients
Objective Ankle plantar flexor spasticity after stroke. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) in treating ankle plantar flexor spasticity after stroke. Methods A total of 85 patients with ankle plantar flexor spasticity after stroke were enrolled and randomly divided into two groups:the extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) group and the control group. The ESWT group received ESWT combined with conventional rehabilitation treatment,while the control group received conventional rehabilitation treatment alone. Both groups were treated for 4 weeks. The assessment parameters included the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS),Tardieu Scale (Tardieu-X spasticity angle and Tardieu-Y spasticity degree),range of motion (ROM) of the affected ankle,6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT),modified Barthel index (lower limb score),and muscle stiffness assessed by strain index. Evaluations were conducted before treatment (baseline),immediately after the last treatment,and one month after treatment. Statistical analysis was performed using Friedman two-way analysis of variance and Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance. Results The ESWT group showed significant improvements in MAS score (P<0.001),Tardieu-X score (P=0.0017),ankle ROM (P<0.001),and strain index (P<0.001) after treatment. In the control group,significant improvement was observed only in ankle ROM (P=0.048) and strain index (P<0.001),while there were no significant changes in MAS score (P=0.247) and Tardieu-X score (P=0.717). Both groups demonstrated significant improvement in the modified Barthel index and 6MWT scores;how-ever,there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusion ESWT combined with conventional rehabilitation therapy significantly improves ankle plantar flexor spasticity after stroke,outperforming conven-tional rehabilitation therapy alone. The most notable improvements were observed in MAS score,Tardieu-X score,and ankle ROM,suggesting that ESWT is an effective treatment method for post-stroke ankle plantar flexor spasticity.
StrokeAnkle Plantarflexion Muscle SpasmExtracorporeal Shock Wave TherapyStroke RehabilitationComparative Study on Efficacy
万方数据
维普
