Study Paradigms and Principles Investigated in Motor Learning Research After Stroke: A Scoping Review

Occupational Therapy Practice: Time From Stroke Onset to Outpatient Upper Limb Rehabilitation

Upper limb stroke rehabilitation has been understudied in usual occupational therapy. The study's purpose was to describe the timing and amount of usual occupational therapy in the stroke population for hospital-based outpatient upper limb rehabilitation. A multi-site study of timing and amount of occupational therapy was calculated for mild and moderate upper limb stroke impairments using the Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Upper Extremity (FMA-UE). Mild stroke participants (n = 58) had a mean of 164.25 days, and the moderate stroke participants (n = 64) had a mean of 106.75 days from the date of stroke onset to first treatment which was significantly different (p = .047). There were no significant differences in the amount of therapy between mild or moderate stroke patients. Mild stroke patients experience a longer delay in receiving outpatient occupational therapy compared with moderate impairments which may be attributed to the subtlety of the impairments that impact participation in daily activities.

Enhancing upper-limb neurorehabilitation in chronic stroke survivors using combined action observation and motor imagery therapy

Introduction

For people who have had a stroke, recovering upper-limb function is a barrier to independence. When movement is difficult, mental practice can be used to complement physical therapy. In this within-participants study we investigated the effects of combined action observation and motor imagery (AO + MI) therapy on upper-limb recovery in chronic stroke survivors.

Methods

A Graeco-Latin Square design was used to counterbalance four mental practice conditions (AO + MI, AO, MI, Control) across four cup-stacking tasks of increasing complexity. Once a week, for five consecutive weeks, participants (n = 10) performed 16 mental practice trials under each condition. Each trial displayed a 1st person perspective of a cup-stacking task performed by an experienced model. For AO, participants watched each video and responded to an occasional color cue. For MI, participants imagined the effort and sensation of performing the action; cued by a series of still-images. For combined AO + MI, participants observed a video of the action while they simultaneously imagined performing the same action in real-time. At three time points (baseline; post-test; two-week retention test) participants physically executed the three mentally practiced cup-stacking tasks, plus a fourth unpractised sequence (Control), as quickly and accurately as possible.

Results

Mean movement execution times were significantly reduced overall in the post-test and the retention test compared to baseline. At retention, movement execution times were significantly shorter for combined AO + MI compared to both MI and the Control. Individual participants reported clinically important changes in quality of life (Stroke Impact Scale) and positive qualitative experiences of AO + MI (social validation).

Discussion

These results indicate that when physical practice is unsuitable, combined AO + MI therapy could offer an effective adjunct for neurorehabilitation in chronic stroke survivors.

Principles into Practice: An Observational Study of Physiotherapists use of Motor Learning Principles in Stroke Rehabilitation

OBJECTIVE(S)

To describe a) how motor learning principles are applied during post stroke physiotherapy, with a focus on lower limb rehabilitation; and b) the context in which these principles are used, in relation to patient and/or task characteristics.

DESIGN

Direct non-participation observation of routine physiotherapy sessions, with data collected via video recording. A structured analysis matrix and pre-agreed definitions were used to identify, count and record: type of activity; repetitions; instructional and feedback statements (frequency and type); strategies such as observational learning and augmented feedback. Data was visualised using scatter plots, and analysed descriptively.

SETTING

6 UK Stroke Units PARTICIPANTS: 89 therapy sessions were observed, involving 55 clinicians and 57 patients.

RESULTS

Proportion of time spent active within each session ranged from 26% to 98% (mean 85, SD 19). The frequency of task repetition varied widely, with a median of 3.7 repetitions per minute (IQR 2.1-8.6). Coaching statements were common (mean 6.46 per minute), with 52% categorised as instructions, 14% as feedback, and 34% as verbal cues/motivational statements. 13% of instructions and 6% of feedback statements were externally focussed. Examining the use of different coaching behaviours in relation to patient characteristics found no associations. Overall, practice varied widely across the dataset.

CONCLUSIONS

To optimise the potential for motor skill learning, therapists must manipulate features of their coaching language (what they say, how much and when) and practice design (type, number, difficulty and variability of task). There is an opportunity to implement motor learning principles more consistently, to benefit motor skill recovery following stroke.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03792126). CONTRIBUTION OF THE PAPER.

Action observation for upper limb rehabilitation after stroke

BACKGROUND

Action observation (AO) is a physical rehabilitation approach that facilitates the occurrence of neural plasticity through the activation of the mirror-neural system, promoting motor recovery in people with stroke.

OBJECTIVES

To assess whether AO enhances upper limb motor function in people with stroke.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Stroke Group Trials Register (last searched 18 May 2021), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (18 May 2021), MEDLINE (1946 to 18 May 2021), Embase (1974 to 18 May 2021), and five additional databases. We also searched trial registries and reference lists.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of AO alone or associated with physical practice in adults after stroke. The primary outcome was upper limb (arm and hand) motor function. Secondary outcomes included dependence on activities of daily living (ADL), motor performance, cortical activation, quality of life, and adverse effects.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently selected trials according to the predefined inclusion criteria, extracted data, assessed risk of bias using RoB 1, and applied the GRADE approach to assess the certainty of the evidence. The reviews authors contacted trial authors for clarification and missing information.

MAIN RESULTS

We included 16 trials involving 574 individuals. Most trials provided AO followed by the practice of motor actions. Training varied between 1 day and 8 weeks of therapy, 10 to 90 minutes per session. The time of AO ranged from 1 minute to 10 minutes for each motor action, task or movement observed. The total number of motor actions ranged from 1 to 3. Control comparisons included sham observation, physical therapy, and functional activity practice.

PRIMARY OUTCOMES

AO improved arm function (standardized mean difference (SMD) 0.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.17 to 0.61; 11 trials, 373 participants; low-certainty evidence); and improved hand function (mean difference (MD) 2.76, 95% CI 1.04 to 4.49; 5 trials, 178 participants; low-certainty evidence).

SECONDARY OUTCOMES

AO did not improve ADL performance (SMD 0.37, 95% CI -0.34 to 1.08; 7 trials, 302 participants; very low-certainty evidence), or quality of life (MD 5.52, 95% CI -30.74 to 41.78; 2 trials, 30 participants; very low-certainty evidence). We were unable to pool the other secondary outcomes (motor performance and cortical activation). Only two trials reported adverse events without significant adverse effects.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

The effects of AO are small for arm function compared to any control group; for hand function the effects are large, but not clinically significant. For both, the certainty of evidence is low. There is no evidence of benefit or detriment from AO on ADL and quality of life of people with stroke; however, the certainty of evidence is very low. As such, our confidence in the effect estimate is limited because it will likely change with future research.

Is hypnotic assessment relevant to neurology?

Studies conducted in healthy subjects have clearly shown that different hypnotic susceptibility, which is measured by scales, is associated with different functional equivalence between imagery and perception/action (FE), cortical excitability, and information processing. Of note, physiological differences among individuals with high (highs), medium (mediums), and low hypnotizability scores (lows) have been observed in the ordinary state of consciousness, thus independently from the induction of the hypnotic state, and in the absence of specific suggestions. The potential role of hypnotic assessment and its relevance to neurological diseases have not been fully explored. While current knowledge and therapies allow a better survival rate, there is a constant need to optimize rehabilitation treatments and quality of life. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of hypnotizability-related features and, specifically, to discuss the hypothesis that the stronger FE, the different mode of information processing, and the greater proneness to control pain and the activity of the immune system observed in individuals with medium-to-high hypnotizability scores have potential applications to neurology. Current evidence of the outcome of treatments based on hypnotic induction and suggestions administration is not consistent, mainly owing to the small sample size in clinical trials and inadequate control groups. We propose that hypnotic assessment may be feasible in clinical routine and give additional cues into the treatment and rehabilitation of neurological diseases.

The effect of frequency of feedback on overground temporal gait asymmetry post stroke

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Temporal gait asymmetry (TGA) affects 55% of people with stroke. This study investigated the effects of augmented feedback during overground gait training, on TGA.

METHODS

Eighteen people with chronic stroke were randomized to receive one of two feedback displays (A or B) and one of three feedback frequencies; no feedback (0%), after alternate walking trials (50%) or after every trial (100%). Display A depicted the TGA ratio as a vertical line along a horizontal axis with perfect symmetry in the middle. Display B depicted single limb stance duration of each leg as a bar graph. Participants completed 25 repetitions of 30 second trials with their assigned feedback (acquisition). Participants completed 10 repetitions of 30 second trials without feedback 24 hours later (retention). A pressure sensitive mat recorded TGA and speed. Changes in TGA and speed were investigated by plotting individual motor learning curves and fitting a curve with locally estimated scatterplot smoothing (LOESS) for each feedback group. An effect of feedback was defined a priori as a LOESS fitted curve with a decreasing slope from acquisition to retention.

RESULTS

LOESS curve exhibited a decreasing slope for TGA in the 100B group only and for speed in the 50A and 0FB groups.

DISCUSSION

This study provides preliminary evidence that visual feedback delivered at a high frequency during a single session of overground walking can change TGA post-stroke without reducing gait speed. An overground gait intervention with high frequency visual feedback to improve TGA post-stroke is worthwhile to investigate.