What is the significance of trunk muscle morphology in terms of balance? Structure vs function in chronic post-stroke patients. A cross-sectional study

Abstract

The aim of this study is to assess the architecture of the trunk muscles with RUSI and to reveal which parameters may be related to balance assessment tools in patients that suffered a stroke with hemiparesis. An observational, analytical, cross-sectional, matched case-control study is conducted, nested within a single-center cohort comprising patients with chronic hemiparesis. Twenty individuals in the chronic post-stroke stage and twenty healthy controls were recruited for this investigation. Key outcomes included the thickness measurements of the Rectus Abdominis (RA), External Oblique (OE), Internal Oblique (OI), Transversus Abdominis (TrAb), and Lumbar Multifidus (LMult) muscles, as well as assessments using the Modified Rivermead Functional Test (MRFT), Timed Up and Go (TUG), and BERG scales.