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Motor dysfunction of the “non-affected” lower limb: a kinematic comparative study between hemiparetic stroke and total knee prosthesized patients

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Abstract

In patients with hemispheric stroke, abnormal motor performances are described also in the ipsilateral limbs. They may be due to a cortical reorganization in the unaffected hemisphere; moreover, also peripheral mechanisms may play a role. To explore this hypothesis, we studied motor performances in 15 patients with hemispheric stroke and in 14 patients with total knee arthroplasty, which have a reduced motility in the prosthesized leg. Using the unaffected leg, they performed five superimposed circular trajectories in a prefixed pathway on a computerized footboard, while looking at a marker on the computer screen. The average trace error was significantly different between the groups of patients and healthy subjects [F (2,25) = 7.9; p = 0.003]; on the contrary, the test time execution did not vary significantly. In conclusion, both groups of patients showed abnormal motor performances of the unaffected leg; this result suggests a likely contribution of peripheral mechanisms.

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Acknowledgment

The authors thank Davide Cattaneo, Pht, from Fondazione Don Gnocchi of Milan, for his contribution on technical and methodological aspects of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rehabilitation Department, Fondazione Istituto San Raffaele-G.Giglio, 90015, Cefalù (PA), Italy

    Sergio Bagnato, Cristina Boccagni, Antonia Trinchera, Giovanni Guercio & Giuseppe Galardi

  2. Orthopaedic Department, Fondazione Istituto San Raffaele-G. Giglio, Cefalù (PA), Italy

    Filippo Boniforti

  3. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Giulia Letizia

Authors
  1. Sergio Bagnato
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  2. Cristina Boccagni
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  3. Filippo Boniforti
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  4. Antonia Trinchera
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  5. Giovanni Guercio
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  6. Giulia Letizia
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  7. Giuseppe Galardi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giuseppe Galardi.

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Bagnato, S., Boccagni, C., Boniforti, F. et al. Motor dysfunction of the “non-affected” lower limb: a kinematic comparative study between hemiparetic stroke and total knee prosthesized patients. Neurol Sci 30, 107–113 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-009-0031-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-009-0031-0

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