| Objective: To investigate the efficacy of functional electrical stimulation on the lower limb motor function and walking ability of hemiplegic stroke patients. Methods: Sixty hemiplegic stroke patients were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group (n=30 each). Both groups were treated with routine rehabilitation, but the treatment group also undertook gait training with gait triggered functional electrical stimulation. The training was carried out 20 min every day, 5 days every week for 8 weeks. All patients were assessed with the Fugl-Meyer lower limb assessment (FMA), functional ambulation category (FAC) classification and footprint analysis pretreatment and 8 weeks post treatment. Results: Eight weeks post treatment, the FMA motor function, FAC classification and the average values of step length, stride width and velocity at the affected side in both two groups were significantly increased as compared with those pretreatment, more significantly in the treatment group than in the control group (P<0.05). Conclusions: Gait training with functional electrical stimulation combined with routine rehabilitation training can distinctly improve the motor function of lower limbs and the walking ability of hemiplegic stroke patients. |
