Impact of Parakinesia brachialis oscitans on limb functional recovery after stroke: a cohort study

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Parakinesia brachialis oscitans (PBO) is an involuntary elevation of the paralyzed upper limb during yawning, observed after ischemic stroke.
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The study compared motor recovery at 3 months between ischemic stroke patients with PBO, without PBO, and with resolved PBO using a propensity score-matched design.
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Patients with PBO showed significantly higher FMA scores and Lovett grades at 3 months compared to those without PBO.
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Among PBO patients, those with early spontaneous resolution achieved better FMA scores than those with persistent PBO.
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The findings suggest that PBO may serve as a prognostic indicator for functional recovery, warranting further research.

Frontiers In Neurology

by Congcong Wang, Hua Hu, Runying Wang, Bin Xu, Jia Du, Zhou Su, Shuangxi Guo, Jingkai Wang, Xiaojun Tian
May 8, 2026

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