A randomized controlled evaluation of the efficacy of an ankle-foot cast on walking recovery early after stroke: SWIFT Cast Trial

Pomeroy, Valerie ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4487-823X, Rowe, Philip, Clark, Allan ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2965-8941, Walker, Andrew, Kerr, Andrew, Chandler, Elizabeth, Barber, Mark and Baron, Jean-Claude (2016) A randomized controlled evaluation of the efficacy of an ankle-foot cast on walking recovery early after stroke: SWIFT Cast Trial. Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair, 30 (1). pp. 40-48. ISSN 1545-9683

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Abstract

Background. Timely provision of an ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) orthotist customized for individuals early after stroke can be problematic. Objective. To evaluate the efficacy of a therapist-made AFO (SWIFT Cast) for walking recovery. Methods. This was a randomized controlled, observer-blind trial. Participants (n = 105) were recruited 3 to 42 days poststroke. All received conventional physical therapy (CPT) that included use of “off-the-shelf” and orthotist-made AFOs. People allocated to the experimental group also received a SWIFT Cast for up to 6 weeks. Measures were undertaken before randomization, 6 weeks thereafter (outcome), and at 6 months after stroke (follow-up). The primary measure was walking speed. Clinical efficacy evaluation used analysis of covariance. Results. Use of a SWIFT Cast during CPT sessions was significantly higher (P < .001) for the SWIFT Cast (55%) than the CPT group (3%). The CPT group used an AFO in 26% of CPT sessions, compared with 11% for the SWIFT Cast group (P = .005). At outcome, walking speed was 0.42 (standard deviation [SD] = 0.37) m/s for the CPT group and 0.32 (SD = 0.34) m/s for the SWIFT Cast group. Follow-up walking speed was 0.53 (SD = 0.38) m/s for the CPT group and 0.43 (0.34) m/s for the SWIFT Cast group. Differences, after accounting for minimization factors, were insignificant at outcome (P = .345) and follow-up (P = .360). Conclusion and implications. SWIFT Cast did not enhance the benefit of CPT, but the control group had greater use of another AFO. However, SWIFT Cast remains a clinical option because it is low cost and custom-made by therapists who can readily adapt it during the rehabilitation period.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (http://www.uk.sagepub.com/aboutus/openaccess.htm).
Uncontrolled Keywords:	rehabilitation,stroke,orthotics,physical therapy,walking
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > School of Health Sciences Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	21 Oct 2015 16:00
Last Modified:	18 May 2023 00:15
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/54742
DOI:	10.1177/1545968315583724

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