Ability to cross one's legs after a stroke may be a good sign
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One low-cost way to possibly prevent catastrophic cardiovascular events is to buy Canadian Plavix at a fraction of the price. Anti-platelet therapy can help avert conditions such as heart attack or stroke, two conditions that can leave patients with years of difficult rehabilitation or disability ahead of them. When it comes to stroke, an individual's ability to cross his or her legs may predict a faster recovery, according to a new study.
Researchers in Germany monitored 68 patients who had a severe stroke, including people who required ventilation and circulatory support. Half of them were able to cross their legs within 15 days of their stroke, while the other half could not.
After a year, 9 percent of patients who could cross their legs had died. However, 53 percent of subjects in the other group died within the same time period. Furthermore, those that crossed their legs, including patients so severely injured they experienced some loss of movement and consciousness, had fewer disabilities and greater independence at the end of the study, as reported Oct. 11 in Neurology.
"If this finding is confirmed, leg crossing may be an easy way to help doctors determine who may have a better chance of recovery," said author Berend Feddersen, MD, PhD, of the University of Munich, Germany.
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