Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Upper extremity (UE) functional recovery after stroke requires the integration of motor and sensory systems. We describe the relationship among recovery of somatosensation, motor impairment, and manual dexterity from acute to 3 months poststroke. Sensory retraining emphasized in conjunction with motor interventions after stroke may improve functional UE outcomes. Primary Author and Speaker: Isha Vora Contributing Authors: David Lin, Julie DiCarlo, Jessica Ranford, and Teresa J. Kimberley

OBJECTIVE. Our objective was to determine the effect of loss of body sensation on activity participation in stroke survivors. METHOD. Participants (N = 268) were assessed at hospital admission for somatosensory and motor impairment using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale. Participation was assessed using the Activity Card Sort (ACS) in the postacute phase. Between-group differences in activity participation were analyzed for participants with and without somatosensory impairment and with or without paresis. RESULTS. Somatosensory impairment was experienced in 33.6% of the sample and paresis in 42.9%. ACS profiles were obtained at a median of 222 days poststroke. Somatosensory loss alone (z = 1.96, p = .048) and paresis in upper and lower limbs without sensory loss (z = 4.62, p < .001) influenced activity participation. CONCLUSION. Somatosensory impairment is associated with reduced activity participation; however, paresis of upper and lower limbs can mask the contribution of sensory loss.

OBJECTIVE. We sought to determine the association between minimal depression, upper-extremity (UE) impairment, and UE motor function in a cohort of participants with subacute stroke. METHOD. We conducted a retrospective, secondary analysis of an interventional study. Correlational analyses were performed using the following outcome measures: the UE section of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FM), the functional ability section of the Arm Motor Ability Test (AMAT), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI–II). RESULTS. We found a negative correlation between BDI–II and both the FM (−.120, p = .196) and the AMAT (−.110, p = .275); however, this correlation was not statistically significant. Women exhibited higher depression scores (8.75 ± 0.78) than men (6.29 ± 0.46; p = .008). CONCLUSION. Low levels of depression are not associated with UE motor impairment and function in people with minimal to moderate UE disability levels. Poststroke depression occurs more frequently in women, warranting additional research on sex-specific differences. Given the proliferation of UE therapies targeting this group, this information is important for effective therapy planning and implementation.

OBJECTIVE. We investigated the co-occurrence of motor impairments in children with speech and language impairments. METHOD. Three search strategies produced 16 studies that met the inclusion criteria for the meta-analysis. These 16 studies yielded 110 effect sizes (d). Heterogeneity was evaluated by obtaining Q and I-squared values. RESULTS. Children with speech and language impairments made more motor errors than children without impairments, with a statistically significant large effect size (d = 1.23, p < .001). Statistically significant medium effects between groups were found in terms of motor score (d = −0.61, p < .001) and motor time (d = 0.47, p < .001). Heterogeneity was statistically significant for all three measurements of motor abilities. DISCUSSION. Deficits in specific speech and language disorders were associated with motor impairments. This finding might be important for the development of daily living and academic skills in children with speech and language impairments.