Management of post-stroke fatigue: an Australian health professional survey

Abstract

Purpose

Evidence for post-stroke fatigue management is limited. We aimed to explore how Australian health professionals assess and assist fatigue management. Our objectives were to identify fatigue assessment tools and interventions used, explore clinician’s confidence managing fatigue and explore whether management of post-stroke fatigue differs from management of fatigue related to other conditions.

Materials and methods

An online cross-sectional survey was completed by Australian health professionals (n = 60) providing services to people with fatigue. Analysis of open-ended questions identified common interventions and descriptive statistics were calculated for closed and dichotomized questions.

Results

Routine use of formal fatigue assessment tools was low (17%, n = 10). Most respondents reporting use of the Fatigue Impact Scale, Fatigue Assessment Scale and Fatigue Severity Scale. To address fatigue, respondents reported providing energy optimization strategies, education, and exercise interventions in clinical practice. Less frequently reported interventions were strategies to adapt tasks, sleep hygiene, psychology, nutrition, and pharmacology interventions. Respondents were “moderately” confident managing post-stroke fatigue. Respondents did not report differences between how they manage post-stroke fatigue and fatigue present in other conditions.

Conclusions

Few Australian health professionals formally assess post-stroke fatigue. Management is multidisciplinary and based on evidence from fatigue management in other conditions.

Implications for rehabilitation

• Most health professionals are not routinely using formal assessment tools for fatigue, possibly due to a lack of consensus on best practice in research.

• Common strategies recommended by health professionals include energy optimisation strategies, education and exercise.

• Comprehensive guidelines for post-stroke fatigue management are yet to be established.

• Health professionals should assess post-stroke fatigue using a validated tool to ensure an individualised approach to management based on the current available clinical guidelines.

Keywords:

• Stroke
• fatigue
• therapy
• health care surveys

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.