NCT01010607

Brief Summary

Upper limb paralysis following stroke is a very common problem. Only 30% of stroke patients who suffer from upper limb paresis experience a full recovery of function. There is a need for the development of more efficient rehabilitation methods for the improvement of the paralysed upper limb function. It has been shown that the use of mirror therapy after a stroke induces the activation of motor, sensory and associative regions in the affected hemisphere and is associated with an improvement in the function of the affected limb. Mirror therapy is a treatment modality in which the affected arm is hidden from the patient's sight; the patient is instructed to watch the reflection of his healthy hand on a mirror while he performs movements with his healthy hand and tries to move simultaneously his affected hand. This induces the illusion that his affected hand moves well. It has also been shown that applying vibration to a muscle tendon at frequencies between 50-100 Hz induces an illusion of elongation of the vibrated muscle, if visual feedback is prevented. For instance, vibrating the triceps will induce a strong illusion of elbow flexion. In the present study the investigators will couple the use of a mirror with the application of vibration to tendons, in order to obtain a multisensorial and strong illusion of movement in the paralyzed limb. The study hypothesis is that the administration of mirror therapy together with vibration will induce the activation of multiple motor, sensory and associative areas in the affected brain hemisphere, resulting in improvement of the affected upper limb function, compared to the administration of mirror therapy alone or sham therapy.

Trial Health

43
At Risk

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Trial has exceeded expected completion date
Enrollment
30

participants targeted

Target at P50-P75 for phase_1 stroke

Timeline
Completed

Started Nov 2009

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
unknown

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Start

First participant enrolled

November 1, 2009

Completed
7 days until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

November 8, 2009

Completed
2 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

November 10, 2009

Completed
1.1 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

December 1, 2010

Completed
11 months until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

November 1, 2011

Completed
Last Updated

June 3, 2010

Status Verified

November 1, 2009

Enrollment Period

1.1 years

First QC Date

November 8, 2009

Last Update Submit

June 2, 2010

Conditions

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Upper Limb function according to Fugl-Meyer assessment

    after treatment, and 3 months after treatment

Secondary Outcomes (1)

  • Activity of Daily living performance assessed by FIM (Functional Independence Measurement) score

    after treatment and 3 months after treatment

Study Arms (3)

Vibraton Mirror (VM)

EXPERIMENTAL

subjects will receive tendon vibration AND mirror therapy

Device: Vibration and Mirror

Mirror (M)

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Subjects will receive treatment only with Mirror, together with sham vibration (over bone instead of tendon)

Device: Mirror therapy

Sham (S)

SHAM COMPARATOR

Opaque board instead of mirror, bone vibration instead of tendon vibration

Device: no mirror, sham vibration

Interventions

10 treatments of 30 minutes in which vibration of 50-100 Hz will be administrated to the elbow and wrist muscles together with the use of a mirror. The patient moves his healthy hand in a certain repetitive pattern and watches its reflection on a mirror. Meanwhile he receives vibration in his affected hand in a timing that induces the illusion of movements similar to the movements of his healthy hand, thereby inducing a strong illusion of movement of his affected hand.

Vibraton Mirror (VM)

10 sessions of mirror therapy: moving the healthy hand while watching its reflection on a mirror. Meanwhile sham vibration over bone in the affected handwill be given to resemble the conditions of the experimental arm.

Mirror (M)

10 sessions in which patient moves his healthy hand and tries to move his affected hand, which is hidden by an opaque board instead of a mirror. Sham vibration is applied to bone instead of muscle, no illusion is generated.

Sham (S)

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 85 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Stroke onset 1 month-1 year ago
  • NIH Stroke Scale 3-15 on admission to study
  • Affected Upper limb function 10-90% on Fugl-Meyer scale
  • Ability to understand instructions and to move freely the unaffected upper limb

You may not qualify if:

  • Severe cognitive impairment- severe Aphasia or severe Neglect that impair ability to understand instructions or to execute tasks

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Hadassah University Hospital

Jerusalem, Israel

Location

Related Publications (2)

  • Goodwin GM, McCloskey DI, Matthews PB. The contribution of muscle afferents to kinaesthesia shown by vibration induced illusions of movement and by the effects of paralysing joint afferents. Brain. 1972;95(4):705-48. doi: 10.1093/brain/95.4.705. No abstract available.

    PMID: 4265060BACKGROUND
  • Dohle C, Pullen J, Nakaten A, Kust J, Rietz C, Karbe H. Mirror therapy promotes recovery from severe hemiparesis: a randomized controlled trial. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2009 Mar-Apr;23(3):209-17. doi: 10.1177/1545968308324786. Epub 2008 Dec 12.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

StrokeHemiplegia

Interventions

Mirror Movement Therapy

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Cerebrovascular DisordersBrain DiseasesCentral Nervous System DiseasesNervous System DiseasesVascular DiseasesCardiovascular DiseasesParalysisNeurologic ManifestationsSigns and SymptomsPathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Physical Therapy ModalitiesRehabilitationTherapeutics

Central Study Contacts

Elior Moreh, MD

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
phase 1
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
DOUBLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

November 8, 2009

First Posted

November 10, 2009

Study Start

November 1, 2009

Primary Completion

December 1, 2010

Study Completion

November 1, 2011

Last Updated

June 3, 2010

Record last verified: 2009-11

Locations