Determinants of Poststroke Fatigue among Stroke Survivors Undergoing Rehabilitation in Nigeria

Poststroke fatigue (PSF) is a major cause of debility after stroke. This study examined socio-demographic and clinical determinants of PSF.

A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the associations between PSF and socio-demographic (age, gender, marital status, educational level, and poststroke employment status) as well as clinical (type, side and nature of stroke, poststroke duration and function disability) characteristics of stroke survivors undergoing outpatient physiotherapy at 2 government hospitals in Nigeria. Functional disability and PSF were respectively assessed using the Modified Rankin Scale and the Fatigue Severity Scale through face-to-face interviews. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the associations between PSF and the socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the participants.

One hundred stroke survivors with a male majority (66%) participated in the study. The mean age of participants was 55.3 ± 13.8 years while mean post-stroke duration was 12.6 ± 19.3 months. The regression model obtained from the statistical analysis was responsible for 33% (of the variance in PSF (R2 = 0.33)) while only functional disability was independently and significantly associated with PSF (β = 0.59; P < 0.0001; 95% CI = 0.35 - 0.75).

Functional disability was the sole significant determinant of PSF. The need to effectively address functional disability through effective and proven rehabilitation strategies is emphasized