Day-to-day features of soleus stretch reflexes in sub-acute stroke patients

The aim of the study was to assess the reliability and variability of stretch reflex magnitude (SRmag) in sub-acute stroke patients. For testing, rapid dorsiflexion stretches were induced 24?h apart in 22 patients and 34 controls. SRmag between sessions in patients and controls was not different and the SRmag on the more-affected side was significantly larger than the less-affected, dominant, and non-dominant sides. The SRmag was consistent between sessions. Therefore, patients were not as variable between sessions as we had hypothesized.