Functional independence of elderly persons after stroke

Abstract

Objective. Determining the outcome of the rehabilitation treatment of stroke patients, concerning daily life activity and self-care of people older than 65 years. Method. The research conducted in Cuprija General Hospital, at the Neurology Department, from 1st September to 31st December 2010, and it included 50 patients with stroke. All patients were subjected to FIM test for functional independence evaluation before and after the treatment. The data about age, gender, severity of neurological deficit and presence of other illnesses were obtained and analyzed using descriptive and analytical statistics. Results. The average age of the patients was 72+/-4.2 years. Males patients contributed to the 42% of the study sample and 58% of study subjects were females. Hypertension was found in 84% (42/50), coronary artery diseases in 48 % (24/50), and diabetes mellitus in 44% (22/50) of the patents. The patients' average total value of the FIM index improved significantly after the treatment. Hospitalization during rehabilitation lasted from 9 to 54 days. Improvement in the total score was achieved regardless of the treatment duration. Conclusion. The rehabilitation treatment of elderly people after stroke is beneficial and effective in relation to the recovery of most aspects of daily life activities and self-care.

Cilj. Odrediti ishod rehabilitacionog lečenja kod bolesnika sa moždanim udarom, koji se odnosi na aktivnosti dnevnog života i samostalne nege osoba starijih od 65 godina Metod. Istraživanje je sprovedeno na Neurološkom odeljenju Opšte bolnice u Ćupriji, od 1. septembra do 31. decembra 2010. godine i uključilo je 50 bolesnika sa moždanim udarom. Svi ispitanici su podvrgnuti FIM testiranju procene funkcionalne nezavisnosti pre i posle lečenja. Prikupljeni su podaci o dobu, polu, težini neurološkog deficita i prisustva drugih bolesti i analizirani su koristeći deskriptivnu i analitičku statistiku. Rezultati. Prosečna starost bolesnika je bila 72+/-4.2 godine. Muškarci su učestvovali sa 42% u ukupnom studijskom uzorku a 58% ispitanika su bile žene. Hipertenziju je imalo 84% (42/50), koronarnu bolesti 48 % (24/50), a dijabetes melitus 44% (22/50) ispitanika. Ukupna vrednost prosečnog FIM indeksa po pacijentu se značajno poboljšala posle lečenja. Hospitalizacija tokom rehabilitacije je trajala od 9 do 54 dana. Poboljšanje ukupnog skora je postignuto nezavisno od dužine lečenja. Zaključak. Rehabilitacioni tretman starih osoba posle moždanog udara je koristan i efikasan u odnosu prema oporavku najvažnijih aspekata aktivnosti dnevnog života i samostalne nege.