Objective
To investigate and quantify functional deficit in ischemic stroke rat. Method: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into sham group and stroke group. Permanent cerebral ischemia was inflicted on the stroke group by occluding the middle cerebral artery (MCAO). The proportion of hind limb weight bearing pressure was also measured. The withdrawal threshold values in the hindpaws were measured by using von-Frey hair for seven days from the day before ischemia.Results: The proportion of paretic hind limb pressure to whole hind limb pressure in stroke group was significantly reduced than sham group (p＜0.05). The withdrawal threshold values of the paretic hindpaw in stroke group were not different from those in the sham group during whole experimental session (p＞0.05). Garcia motor score of stroke group was reduced significantly than sham group in whole experimental session after MCAO (p＜0.05). The proportions of right hind limb pressure showed no correlation with Garcia motor score after MCAO (p＞0.05).Conclusion: Ischemic stroke in rats can lead to the reduction of pressure at paretic hind limb. The motor test for pressure weight borne on the paretic leg may provide functional information in the future studies with ischemic stroke rat. (J Korean Acad Rehab Med 2008; 32: 253-257)
