Course of cognitive functioning during stroke rehabilitation.

The aim of the study was to determine the course of cognitive functioning within the subacute phase (< 4 months) after stroke during rehabilitation. Stroke patients admitted to a rehabilitation centre were submitted to a neuropsychological examination on admission (1 month post-stroke) and upon discharge (4 months post-stroke). Cognitive domains studied were attention, executive functioning, memory, and visual attention. Forty-two patients (mean age = 57.1 years; SD = 7.7) participated. At admission more than half of the patients showed deficits in attention and memory. Patients improved significantly on these domains; the largest improvement was seen in the domain of visual attention, while executive functioning did not improve significantly. A differential course of cognitive functioning was found in the subacute phase after stroke. The prognosis of visual attention is the most prominent.