The relationship between motor function of hemiplegic upper limb and independency in activities of daily of living in stroke patients in Tehran

The capability of motor function of upper limbs in the performance of activities of daily of living (ADL) is an important parameter. After stroke, the hemiplegic upper limb may loose its function. This study aims at investigating of the relationship between involved upper limb motor dysfunction and independence in ADL of the 6-24 month post-stroke patients in Tehran. This is a non-experimental descriptive analytical, cross-sectional study. 45 stroke patients were selected randomly from the patiens who were attending at Occupational Therapy Clinic in Tehran and also meeting the inclusion criteria. The subjects were evaluated for the performance of ADL, both basic ADL (BADL) and instrumental ADL (IADL), by Barthel index and IADL, respectively, and for hemiplegic upper limb movement by Fugl-Meyer. There was a significant relationship between hemiplegic upper limb movement and independency in BADL (P<0.001) and IADL (P<0.003). There was also a significant relationship between movement of involved shoulder, elbow joints and hand with independency in BADL, but only shoulder and elbow joints have relationship with IADL. The results of the present study show a moderate correlation between involved motor function of upper limb and independency in ADL. Since the normal hand function for BADL is not cruial, investigating other factors seems to be essential for the improvement of the independency ADL.