Shuhei Koeda, OTR, PhD, Koshi Sumigawa, OTR, PhD, Yuji Koike, OTR, MS,
Chihiro Sato, OTR, MS, Hiroto Imai, OTR, Eri Osanai, OTR, Tomoki Shimizu, OTR,
Yuko Muto, OTR, Akiyo Harigae, OTR, Akihiro Mizunashi, OTR, Takao Osanai, OTR, PhD
Jpn J Compr Rehabil Sci 5: 125-130, 2014
Objective: Sleep disorder occurs at a high frequency
in stroke patients and can disrupt the progress of
rehabilitation. Here, we investigated stroke patientsf
recognition of their improvement (i.e. their subjective
feelings of recovery). We also explored ways of
preventing and treating sleep disorder in these stroke
patients by determining the relationship between
subjective feelings of recovery and sleep disorder.
Methods: The study subjects were 42 patients who
had been hospitalized in a kaifukuki (convalescent)
rehabilitation ward for stroke. Subjects were scored on
a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) for subjective feelings of
recovery and on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index
(PSQI) as an indicator of sleep disorder.
Results: A significant negative correlation was found
in the relationship between subjective feelings of
recovery and PSQI score. PSQI scores in the group
with Low subjective feelings of recovery (VAS < 35%)
were significantly higher than those in the group with
High subjective feelings of recovery (VAS >- 35%).
Sleep disorder in the former group was severe.
Subjective feelings of recovery were significantly
positively correlated with the stage of recovery from
motor paralysis and with Activities of Daily Living
(ADL) ability. However, the PSQI score was not
correlated with either of these latter two measures.
Conclusions: We speculated that a decrease in
subjective feelings of recovery caused by motor
paralysis and a decline in ADL abilities in patients
with VAS scores lower than 35% led to impairment of
the sleep state. These results suggest that evaluation of
subjective feelings of recovery is an effective predictor
of sleep disorder in stroke patients.
Key words: stroke, sleep disorder, subjective feelings of recovery, rehabilitation