To evaluate the adequacy of abbreviated versions of International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) (the WHO ICF Checklist and the ICF Comprehensive Core Set for Stroke) with respect to the specific clinical needs of a stroke rehabilitation unit before their implementation at a practical level. Common descriptions of functional limitations were identified from patient records of 10 subsequent subacute stroke patients referred to an inpatient multiprofessional rehabilitation unit of a university hospital. These descriptions were then converted into ICF categories, and the list was compared with the ICF Checklist of the WHO and the ICF Comprehensive and Brief Core Sets for Stroke developed by the ICF Research Branch. From the study population (50% women), 71 different, second-level ICF categories were identified, averaging 36.4 categories/patient (SD 5.8, range 28-46). Except for one category, all of the categories identified were also found in the ICF Comprehensive Core Set for Stroke. Of the categories identified, 49 (69%) were found in the WHO ICF Checklist. All except one category included in the ICF Brief Core Set for Stroke were also in our list. The Comprehensive Core Set for Stroke was found to be a good potential starting point for the practical implementation of the ICF in a stroke rehabilitation unit.