Does muscle strength decrease on the unaffected side in stroke patients? The unaffected side in stroke patients

Abstract

Aim: Muscle strength is necessary to overcome the resistance encountered during activity in stroke individuals. The present study aims to determine total muscle strength and muscle strength loss of unaffected side in stroke individuals. Material and Methods: In this study, muscle strength and grip strength were evaluated using the Power Track II Commander dynamometer and Jamar Hand dynamometer, respectively. Thirty-three stroke individuals and 33 healthy individuals were compared to determine the total muscle strength. The total muscle strength of healthy individuals was calculated by summing the muscle strength of the trunk, lower and upper extremities. In addition, muscle strength of the trunk, unaffected upper and lower extremities was summed to calculate the total muscle strength of stroke patients. Twenty-seven stroke individuals and 33 healthy individuals were analyzed to compare muscle strength of unaffected sides between groups. Results: The total muscle strength of stroke individuals and healthy individuals was 49909.5 N and 182375 N, respectively. The difference between groups was measured as 132465.5 N. The loss of total muscle strength in stroke patients was 72.63%. When comparing total muscle strength on the unaffected side, a significant difference was found in favor of healthy individuals (p = 0.0001). Discussion: Loss of muscle strength on the unaffected side affects the patient's functionality. Therefore, this must be taken into consideration in physiotherapy programs.