Post-Ischemic Stroke Questionnaire Evaluates Treatment Strategy
Individuals who have had a stroke consider social and executive functioning skills to affect their quality of life nearly as much as physical functioning does, according to a new report.1
Stroke affects many aspects of life, but current treatment strategies focus on physical functioning after a stroke.
Using questionnaire data from 1195 people who had an ischemic stroke, the researchers evaluated the effect of a stroke on different aspects of the patient’s life. The average age of participants questioned was 62 years.
The questionnaires were administered roughly 100 days post-stroke and gauged participants’ physical functioning, fatigue, anxiety, sleep problems, thinking skills, effect of pain on the aspects of their life, and their satisfaction with their current social roles and activities.
Overall, participants with stroke reported worse scores than the general population in nearly every aspect, except sleep and depression.
Participants reported the worst scores in physical functioning (63%), social roles and activities (58%), and executive function such as planning or organizing (46%).
“The social participation and executive functioning skills are areas that have not received a lot of attention in stroke rehabilitation,” said Irene L. Katzan, MD, MS, of the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio and a member of the American Academy of Neurology. “We need to better understand how these areas affect people’s well-being and determine strategies to help optimize their functioning.”2
—Amanda Balbi
References:
- Katzan II, Thompson NR, Uchino K, Lapin B. The most affected health domains after ischemic stroke [published online March 28, 2018]. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000005327.
- Stroke affects more than just the physical [press release]. Minneapolis, MN: American Academy of Neurology; March 28, 2018. http://www.aan.com/rss/?event=feed&channel=20. Accessed March 28, 2018.