Activity of Daily Living and Motor Evoked Potentials in the Subacute Stroke Patients

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effectiveness of the daily living activity and motor evoked potential (MEP) in the subacute stroke patients. METHODS: Nineteen subjects with subacute ischaemic/hemorrhagic stroke developed in the last three months were enrolled, and MEP was measured with transcranial magnetic stimulation. Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score were evaluated in both groups before and 4 weeks after comprehensive rehabilitative management. According to the presence of MEP response in the affected hemisphere, subjects were divided into MEP positive and negative group. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the two groups in age, sex, and post-onset duration. Four weeks later, the change in total FIM and self-care score improved significantly in the MEP-positive group, when compared to the MEP-negative group (p<0.05). However, cognitive improvement had no relationship with MEP responsiveness. CONCLUSION: We concluded that initial measurement of MEP is a useful assessment tool in predicting functional outcome of subacute stroke patients.