Mirror Therapy After Stroke: A Dosing Study

Stroke Clinical Trial

Official title: Self-directed Box (Mirror) Therapy After Stroke: A Dosing Study

Status Terminated

Clinical Trial Summary

It has been suggested that augmenting repetitive task practice with the use of box (mirror) therapy (BT) can enhance the benefits of task practice and may provide stroke survivors an opportunity to engage in self-directed practice outside of normally scheduled therapy sessions. However, the dosage of BT to be used in clinical practice is unclear. In order for practitioners to begin integrating BT into clinical practice situations more information is needed to determine what defines a therapeutic dose. The aim of this study is to differentiate between two dosages of self-directed BT added to treatment as usual for decreasing arm and hand motor impairments, improving activity level, and increasing self-directed participation after stroke. Forty-five subjects from the Stroke Rehabilitation Unit at Helen Hayes Hospital (HHH) will be randomly assigned into three groups: treatment as usual plus 30 minute dosage of self-directed BT 5x/week; treatment as usual plus 60 minute dosage of self-directed BT 5x/week; treatment as usual plus 30 minutes of self-directed sham BT 5x/week.

Clinical Trial Description

Approximately 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke each year, and stroke is considered a leading cause of long-term disability. Impairments in arm and hand function are common after stroke and limit engagement in daily life activities, which impacts the overall quality of life of stroke survivors. It has been found that incomplete upper limb recovery predicted health related quality of life in stroke survivors at one year post-stroke in four (self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, & anxiety/depression) out of five domains measured on the EuroQol-5D questionnaire. Thus, evidence-based interventions that improve arm and hand function after stroke are needed. In fact, a recent study identified "treatments for upper extremity recovery" to be one of the top ten research priorities relating to life after stroke according to stroke survivors, caregivers, and health professionals. Evidence suggests task-oriented training interventions such as Repetitive Task Practice (RTP) are effective at improving upper extremity (UE) function and activity, and therapy participation in stroke survivors.

Recently, it has been suggested that augmenting RTP with the use of cognitive strategies, such as Mirror Box Therapy (BT), can enhance the benefits of task practice and may provide stroke survivors an opportunity to engage in self-directed practice outside of normally scheduled therapy sessions. During BT, a person engages in motor activities with the unimpaired limb while watching its mirror reflection superimposed over the (unseen) impaired limb; this process creates a visual illusion whereby activities performed by the unimpaired limb are attributed to the impaired limb. While generating this visual illusion is a common ingredient in published BT effectiveness trials, the actual treatment protocols differ considerably. One important protocol difference seen across published trials relates to the dosage of BT. For instance, the minutes of BT provided range from 10 minutes to 60 minutes per session; session frequencies range from 1 to 7 sessions per week, and the length of the intervention ranges from 3 to 6 weeks. Thus, the dosage of BT to be used in clinical practice is unclear. In order for practitioners to begin integrating BT into clinical practice more information is needed on the effective dosage, as this may vary according to multiple factors (e.g., stage of recovery, the survivor's current functional limitations, or environment in which services are rendered). ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Stroke

• NCT number: NCT02778087
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Columbia University
• Status: Terminated
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: January 2017
• Completion date: February 13, 2018