Objective: To determine whether prestroke level of physical activity influenced stroke severity and long-term outcome.

Methods: Patients included into the present analyses represent a subset of patients with first-ever stroke enrolled into the ExStroke Pilot Trial. Patients with ischemic stroke were randomized in the ExStroke Pilot Trial to an intervention of repeated instructions and encouragement to increase the level of physical activity or to a control group. Prestroke level of physical activity was assessed retrospectively by interview using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) questionnaire. The PASE questionnaire quantifies the amount of physical activity done during a 7-day period. In this prospectively collected patient population initial stroke severity was measured using the Scandinavian Stroke Scale and long-term outcome was assessed after 2 years using the modified Rankin Scale. Statistical analyses were done using ordinal logistic regression.

Results: Data from 265 patients were included with a mean (SD) age of 68.2 (12.2) years. Confirming univariable analyses, multivariable analyses showed that patients with physical activity in the top quartile more likely presented with a less severe stroke, OR 2.54 (95% CI 1.30–4.95), and had a decreased likelihood of poor outcome, OR 0.46 (95% CI 0.22–0.96), compared to patients in the lowest quartile.