Advantages and Disadvantages of Neurological Scales

The neurological features demonstrated by a patient form a valid measurement for the level of impairment experienced following a stroke. These features can be assessed using neurological scores, which assign values to the many deficits exhibited by such patients and allow a prognosis to be made on patient outcome. Several stroke scales have been produced, most of which are based on normative scaling. While these stroke scales provide effective patient assessment, they do have some associated disadvantages. The analysis of multiple minor deficits can lead to the same scoring as a few major deficits, some scales assess stroke only on a small number of items. In addition, most scales operate best in the middle range of stroke severity and have limited value in mild and severe cases. Despite these drawbacks, neurological scores give an earlier and more sensitive response to the outcome of stroke than functional scales. They are powerful prognostic indicators in stroke. Most of them are equivalent, which allows comparison between studies.