title: Rate of isometric knee extension strength development and walking speed after stroke.
abstract: The relationship between lower-limb weakness and walking speed after stroke is not clear. This may be related to the measurement used to quantify weakness, typically peak strength. This study examined the relationship between two measures of isometric knee extension strength, i.e., peak torque and the rate of torque development and walking speed in adults with stroke. This study had 83 stroke survivors who participated. For the affected lower limb, rate and peak torque explained 12% of the variance in gait speed. Removing rate from the model significantly reduced the explained variance; in contrast, removing peak torque did not reduce the variance. For the less affected lower limb, rate tended to be more predictive of gait speed than peak torque. Diminished ability to rapidly generate knee extension torque contributes more to decreased walking speed after stroke than does maximal strength. Of note, 88% of the variance in gait speed is not explained by rate and peak isometric knee extension strength. Further studies are needed to determine if rehabilitation poststroke can increase the rate of knee strength development and if it results in faster walking speeds.
authors.affiliation: Center on Aging, University of Kansas Medical Center, 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, KS 66160-7601, USA. ppohl@kumc.edu.
authors.forename: Patricia S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Pohl
authors.forename: Pamela
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Duncan
authors.forename: Subashan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Perera
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Long
authors.forename: Wen
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jinshi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Kautz
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007537:Isometric Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000502:physiology*; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation; D013997:Time Factors