Effect of Outpatient Cardiac Rehabilitation on Motor Function and Quality of Life in Stroke Survivors
This randomized controlled study examined whether outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (CR) following in-hospital stroke rehabilitation improves motor function and health-related quality of life in 128 stroke survivors (mean age 73.5 years). Patients receiving 3 months of supervised outpatient CR showed significantly greater improvements in walking distance and leg muscle strength compared to controls, though quality of life measures did not significantly improve.