Instrumental Activities of Daily Living in Two Patient Populations, Three Months and One Year After a Stroke

Abstract
The pattern of instrumental activities of daily living (I-ADL) such as household work, locomotion, psychosocial functions and intellectual activity was investigated in two groups of patients, three months and one year after a stroke. Group A (n=78 at three months, n=63 at one year) had received conventional care during the hospital period, while Group B (n=129 at three months, n=120 at one year) had taken part in a more individualised care programme. There was no difference in I-ADL performance between the two groups on the follow-up occasions according to interviews. The individualised care programme in the present study did not result in any significant differences in long-term functional improvements, although the mortality rate was somewhat lower in Group B. The patients of both groups were dependent to a large extent on somebody else in all activities except locomotion. Three-fourths of the patients, however, declared that they were satisfied with their health and life situation, in spite of their handicap.