• PNF and Movement
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.259-266
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• 2014

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe the effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) on gait speed and genu recurvatum episodes in stroke patients. Methods: The patient is a 58-year-old woman with left hemiplegia who presented with genu recurvatum while walking. Each week the patient received two sessions of PNF that each lasted 45 minutes. During a six-week interval the patient underwent therapeutic exercises and occupational therapy five times a week between the two PNF treatments. During each treatment a preand post-test (a 4 m walk test) was conducted, the patient described their fear of falling down (10-point visual analogue scale), and the number of genu recurvatum episodes was recorded. Results: After the first PNF treatment, the fear of falling down was decreased from 8 points to 7 points, and the number of genu recurvatum episodes decreased from 11 to 6. After the second PNF treatment, the fear of falling down decreased from 6 points to 5 points, and the number of genu recurvatum episodes decreased from 5 to 1. The 4 m walking test time also decreased from 30 seconds to 24 seconds. Conclusion: The PNF treatment is beneficial for reducing the fear of falling down, reducing the number of genu recurvatum episodes, and improving the gait speed of stroke patients.