Outcome Three Years After Motor Stroke

There are few well‐designed descriptive studies that focus exclusively on the long‐term outcomes of patients after motor stroke. This study reports mortality rates and describes the psychological and functional outcomes 3 years after motor stroke. A description of the variables during acute care and at 3 months that best explain function 3 years after motor stroke is also provided. Home visits were made to 30 patients and another 19 were interviewed by phone. The four instruments used to measure the outcomes were the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES‐D), the Neurobehavioral Cognitive Status Examination (COGNISTAT), the Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE), and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM™). Eleven of the 60 patients contacted had died by the 3‐year follow up. The main outcome measures were 3‐month FIM of 117.07 (± 12.53) and 3‐year outcomes for CES‐D (6.70 [± 7.29]), COGNISTAT (69.67 [± 15.62]), MMSE (27.53 [± 2.74]), and FIM (114.57 [± 19.00]). A number of multiple regression models were examined; in the best model, the FIM at 3 months accounted for 46% of the variance in function 3 years following the stroke. It is important for rehabilitation nurses to know that the mortality rate was low, psychological outcome was improved, and function was stable 3 years after a motor stroke.