Primary Objective: To compare the level of motor, sensory and functional impairment of individuals hospitalized in a stroke unit in Brazil at the time of admission and the profile observed at hospital discharge. Design: Observational and longitudinal outcome study. Methods and Procedure: We assessed 41 patients with ischemic stroke at admission and hospital discharge by using the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Fugl-Meyer Physical Performance Scale (FM), Functional Independence Measure (FIM) and Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and divided in the group that received or not the thrombolytic therapy. Were used wilcoxon and spearman tests. Results: Significant differences were found between admission and hospital discharge assessment (p < .0001) indicating clinical improvement for individuals submitted to thrombolytic treatment. A moderate correlation was observed for total FM and total FIM (ρ = 0.729; p value<.0001); total FM and motor FIM (ρ = 0.705; p value<.0001); and a moderate negative correlation for NIHSS and total FM (ρ = -0.709; p value<.0001). Strong correlation between motor FIM and total FIM was also observed (ρ = 0.972; p value<.0001). Conclusions: Clinical severity was softened along the hospitalization period. The clinical, motor, sensory and functional characterization enlarges the understanding of the stroke sequelae, besides monitoring the deficits and the level of disability in this population in Brazil.
Keywords: Stroke; hospitalization; inpatient care units; rehabilitation.