Effects of constraint-induced movement therapy on upper limb motor functional recovery in patients with hemiplegic stroke

Objective:To study the effects of constraint-induced movement therapy(CIMT)on upper limb functional recovery and activity of daily living(ADL)improvement in patients with hemiplegic stroke.Methods:Forty patients with stroke were randomly divided into average CIMT group and routine rehabilitation therapy(RRT)group,which were separately treated with constraint-induced movement therapy and routine rehabilitation therapy for 4 weeks.Upper limb function and activity of daily living of all patients were assessed with Fugl-Meyer assessment(FMA)and Modified Barthel Index(MBI)before and after the 4 weeks treatment.Results:After 4 weeks treatment,FMA and MBI scores of the two groups were both significantly increased(P0.01);however,the increase of FMA and MBI scores were significant higher in the CIMT group than that were in the RRT group.(P0.01).Conclusion:Constraint-induced movement therapy is more effective than the routine rehabilitation therapy in improving the upper limb motor function and ADL in the patients with hemiplegic stroke.