This Article Full Text (OnlineFirst PDF) All Versions of this Article: 0269215509104172v1 23/7/639    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Babyar, S. R Articles by Reding, M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Babyar, S. R Articles by Reding, M. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Clinical examination tools for lateropulsion or pusher syndrome following stroke: a systematic review of the literature

¹ Physical Therapy Program, Hunter College and Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York, USA
² The Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, USA
³ Department of Physical Therapy, Naeg School of Education, University of Connecticut, Storrs, USA
⁴ Hôpital Nord – CHU, Clinique de Médecine Physique et Réadapatation, Pôle Rééducation et Physiologie, Université Grenoble, Grenoble, Grenoble, France
⁵ Neurology Department, Stroke Unit, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital, White Plains, New York, USA

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: sbabyar{at}burke.org.

	Abstract

Objective: To examine the clinimetric properties and clinical applicability of published tools for ‘quantifying’ the degree of lateropulsion or pusher syndrome following stroke.

Data sources: Search through electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Science Citation Index) with the terms lateropulsion, pushing, pusher syndrome, validity, reliability, internal consistency, responsiveness, sensitivity, specificity, posture and stroke. Databases were searched from their inception to October 2008.

Review methods: Abstracts were selected by one author. A panel of experts then determined which should be included in this review. Five abstracts were reviewed and the panel agreed to omit one abstract because those authors did not write a full manuscript. The panel critiqued manuscripts according to predetermined criteria about clinical and clinimetric properties.

Results: Four manuscripts referencing three tools for examining lateropulsion were found. Validity and reliability data support the clinical use of the Scale for Contraversive Pushing, the Modified Scale for Contraversive Pushing and the Burke Lateropulsion Scale. The Scale for Contraversive Pushing has the most extensive testing of clinimetric properties. The other tools show promising preliminary evidence of clinical and research utility. More testing is needed with larger, more diverse samples.

Reviewers’ conclusions: The Scale for Contraversive Pushing, the Modified Scale for Contraversive Pushing and the Burke Lateropulsion Scale are reliable and valid measures with good clinical applicability. Larger, more varied samples should be used to better delineate responsiveness and other clinimetric properties of these examination tools.

First published on April 29, 2009, doi:10.1177/0269215509104172

Clinical Rehabilitation 2009;23:639.

A more recent version of this article appeared on July 1, 2009


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?