Ten year follow-up of a randomised controlled trial of care in a stroke rehabilitation unit

摘要

Decreased mortality and reduced disability are well recognised short term benefits of care in a stroke unit.1 Early organised management improves survival up to five years after stroke.2 Only one study has examined the effects of care in a stroke unit for longer than five years,3 and it showed that treatment in a combined acute and rehabilitation stroke unit in Norway conferred benefit even 10 years after stroke. We aimed to examine whether the benefits of a non-acute stroke rehabilitation unit persist for 10 years after stroke. This study was a continuation of the five year follow-up by Lincoln and colleagues.