Use of Tendon Vibration and Mirror for the Improvement of Upper Limb Function and Pain Reduction

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.

Conditions

• Stroke
• Hemiplegia

Interventions

DEVICE

Vibration and Mirror

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.

DEVICE

Mirror therapy

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.

DEVICE

no mirror, sham vibration

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.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Hadassah Medical Organization

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

85 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2009-11-30

Primary Completion

2010-12-31

Completion

2011-11-30

Countries

• Israel

Study Locations