Kinesiotherapy prevents shoulder pain in hemiplegic/paretic patients on sub-acute stage post-stroke

Background: Painful shoulder is considered the most common complication of hemiplegic/parethic (H/P) stroke patients. It is a negative factor for neuromotor recovery. Purpose: To study the effects of kinesiotherapy treatment on shoulder pain prevention, and as a secondary endpoints, to analyze muscle strength of H/P shoulder looking at basic functional active mobility. Method: Twenty one inpatients (12 men, 9 women) aged 26 to 87 years, with post-stroke H/P were submitted to thirty minutes daily program kinesiotherapy, started at 48 hours post-stroke up to their hospital discharge. Patients were evaluated pre and post treatment according to the presence or absence of shoulder pain, movements and shoulder strength, and for presence or absence of basic functional movements. Results: No patient complaining of shoulder pain at the hospital discharge (p<0.001). The muscle strength improved signifcantly for elevation, protusion, abduction and flexion of the shoulder (p<0.001). There was improvement also for functional mobility on moving from dorsal to lateral recumb, from lateral recumb to a seated position and in keeping the seated position (p<0.001). Conclusion: Kinesiotherapy in acute phase of stroke prevented shoulder pain.