title: Evaluation of body temperature in individuals with stroke.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A stroke can cause alterations in thermal sensitivity.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  to verify the conditions of body temperature in hemiplegic patients after stroke as compared to healthy individuals, as well as establish relations between thermal sensitivity and gender, age, Body Mass Index (BMI), plegic side, time after stroke, reports of thermal alterations and the motricity of patients with stroke sequelae.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study included 100 patients (55.6±13 years) with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke sequelae with unilateral hemiparesis and thirty healthy subjects (55±12.9 years). Individuals with nervous peripheral lesions, diabetes, peripheral vascular diseases or tumors were not included in this study. The volunteers underwent axillary temperature evaluations with the use of a cutaneous thermometer and evaluations of cutaneous temperature of hands and feet as measured by infrared thermography captured by an infrared sensor (ThermaCAMTM SC 500-FLIR Systems). The mean temperature (°C) was analyzed with the SigmaStat 3.5 statistical package.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results have shown that healthy individuals have similar temperatures on either side of the body. The hemiplegic subjects presented a lower temperature on the plegic side and compared to the healthy subjects, both feet of the hemiparetic individuals were colder. The results have also shown that age, body mass index, and the time after stroke have no influence on the alterations in temperature. Regarding the paretic side, individuals with hemiplegia on the right side (right foot) had a lower temperature than those affected on the left side. Motricity was not related to any difference in temperature between the limbs and the reports of temperature differences had no relation with the actual differences found in the study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Healthy individuals have temperature symmetry between between sides of the body, while individuals with stroke sequelae present lower temperature in the paretic side, especially on their feet.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center, Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine, São Paulo, Brazil.|Adventist University of São Paulo (UNASP), São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fábio Marcon
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Alfieri
authors.affiliation: Stroke Research Unit -, Brain Institute of Rio Grande do Sul (BraIns), PUCRS, Porto Alegre Brazil, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ayrton Roberto
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Massaro
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center, Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thais Raquel
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Filippo
authors.affiliation: Adventist University of São Paulo (UNASP), São Paulo, Brazil.|Laboratory of Exercise Physiology (LAFEX), Adventist University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Leslie Andrews
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Portes
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Center, Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine, São Paulo, Brazil.|School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Linamara Rizzo
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Battistella
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000502:physiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010291:Paresis / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: Stroke; functional evaluation; thermal sensitivity; thermography