Journal of North Khorasan

Abstract Background & objectives: Stroke is one of the major causes hemiplegia and hemi paresis. While may lead to mortality and morbidity. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of physical therapy on exaggerated muscle tonicity, balance and quality of Life in patients with hemiplegic. Subjects & Methods: This study was conducted on hemiplegia patient's secondary to stroke in Neyshabur, Iran. Twenty-four patients were selected and randomly assigned into two groups: control (N=12), and experimental (N=12). The time passed since the onset of the stroke was at least 12 months. Muscle tone was graded on the modified Ashworth Scale before and after the 12 sessions of intervention. During 4 weeks Berg Balance Scaling (BBS), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Barthel scales and demographic data were assessed. Independent and paired t-tests were used to analyze data using SPSS Version 16, P value<0.05 were considered significant. Results: the results showed that the two groups were similar in terms of exaggerated muscle tonicity, balance and quality of Life before intervention. Post-test analysis showed that the average balance and quality of life were significantly improved (p =0.001) and the quadriceps muscle tonicity was significantly decreased by 50 percent in the experimental group (p =0.001). In the control group significant changes were not observed when compared to pre-test measurements. Conclusion: Physical therapy improves balance and quality of life in hemiplegic patients and reduces their muscle tonicity.