title: [Effects of muscle strengthening exercises using a Thera Band on lower limb function of hemiplegic stroke patients].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was to verify the effect of muscle strengthening exercises using a Thera-Band on the lower limbs.
  
  
  METHODS
  The design utilized for this study was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. A control group (16) and experimental group (16) were selected from stroke patients of K Oriental Medicine Hospital who were hospitalized for 5 months from December 2005 through April 2006. While only acupuncture therapy and physical therapy were used on the control group, acupuncture, physical therapy and additional muscle strengthening exercises using a red thera band were used on the experimental group. Muscle strengthening was performed 20 minutes per session, more than one session a day for 4 weeks. Hypotheses for this study were verified using Two-way repeated ANOVA and ANCOVA using a pre test score as a covariate.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The experimental group with thera band muscle strengthening exercises showed a decrease in asymmetry weight loading percentage(F=14.704, P= .010), range of knee (Z=-3.15, P= .001) & deep tendon reflex score(Z=-2.52, P= .012) and moving performance(F=12.328, P= .001)compared to the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It is confirmed that muscle strengthening exercises using a Thera-Band can be used as an effective nursing intervention to improve the function of the lower limb of hemiplegic stroke patients.
authors.affiliation: East-West Nursing Research Institute/College of Nursing Science, KyungHee University, Seoul, Korea. sshan12@khu.ac.kr
authors.forename: Sang Sook
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Jeong Ja
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Her
authors.forename: Youn Jung
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000368:Aged; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006429:Hemiplegia / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy*