None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
In any year, there are approximately 48,000 stroke events amongst Australians. Most patients will experience severe cardiovascular de-conditioning after a stroke and around 21% will experience a decline in mobility which leads to a disruption in usual functioning and may affect social reintegration. For this reason, improving physical fitness may both counteract the deficits frequently resulting from a stroke and play a role in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. While recent Australian clinical guidelines for rehabilitation after stroke have recommended that programmes should include interventions to improve cardiovascular fitness, they provide no information on the components of the most effective programme. Water-based exercise is possible for patients who are non-ambulatory or have balance issues and previous studies have demonstrated high levels of adherence to water-based programmes. The study will compare higher intensity water-based exercise with gym-based exercise of similar intensity for patients within three years of their first stroke. Given the susceptibility of this patient group to functional deterioration, this trial will inform the current debate on the optimal features of programmes designed to improve function and physical fitness following stroke. The current lack of scientifically rigorous research in this area ensures that its results would have immediate application to the content of rehabilitation programmes overall. It is anticipated that the water environment will allow patients to exercise at a higher level than would have been possible on land, translating into greater improvements to function.
Interventions
A water-based intervention consisting of three pool sessions per week for a total of six weeks. Each session will be 40 minutes duration and consist of a standardised resistance program, the intensity of which will be varied according to each individual's ability, with progressive increase in load over the six week period.
Sponsors
Maria Crotty
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to -2147483648 No limit
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
6 months to 3 years since first stroke (ischemic stroke or primary intracerebral haemorrhage), community dwelling, independent ambulation with or without gait aids, Mini Mental State Exam score fo at least 18, ability to accept instruction and give consent
Exclusion criteria
Subsequent stroke, major medical complications following stroke, unstable cardiac conditions, urinary or faecal incontinence, open wounds, tinea, unstable epilepsy or seizures, other comorbid conditions that might contraindicate participation in gym- or water-based exercise, inability to carry out the ecercise program, current participation in an exercise program
Outcome results
None listed