The Effects of Shock Wave Therapy on Spasticity and Walking Ability in People with Stroke: A Comparative Study of Different Application Sites

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of extracorporeal shock wave therapy on the improvement of walking ability through a reduction in spasticity in stroke patients. Methods: Thirty-three patients diagnosed with ischemic stroke by a rehabilitation medicine specialist were randomly assigned to three groups. The patients were divided into experimental group 1 in which shock waves were applied to the muscle–tendon junction, experimental group 2 in which shock waves were applied to the middle of the muscle, and experimental group 3 in which shock waves were applied to both the muscle–tendon junction and the middle of the muscle. The MAS was used to evaluate spasticity in the subjects, and the Dartfish software was used to measure knee and ankle angles during heel-off when walking. Results: Based on the results of the study, a significant decrease in spasticity and increased joint angles were found in experimental groups 1 and 3 compared to experimental group 2, and the change in joint angle was significantly greater in experimental group 3 than in experimental groups 1 and 2. Conclusions: These results indicate that treatment effect may vary depending on the application site of the shock wave, and to obtain the best treatment effect, the shock wave should be applied to both the muscle–tendon junction and the middle part of the muscle.