Functional Improvement in Subacute/Chronic Stroke Through Non-invasive Virtual-reality-Based Telerehabilitation

Stroke is the leading cause of disability in adults worldwide. Rehabilitation after a stroke is crucial, even after the acute phase: initially, it aims to recover the deficits caused by the stroke, but in the subacute/chronic phases the objective is to maintain the functional abilities already acquired. After the acute phase, traditional rehabilitation methods usually include exercises prescribed by a therapist that the patient performs on their own. However, their effectiveness is limited due to the lack of supervision, adherence, and insufficient information provided to the patient about their progress, which would require regular in-person contact with the patient. To date, public health systems have been unable to provide this kind of access to rehabilitation for post-stroke patients, with the risk of worsening deficits and a decline in quality of life. We plan to develop an individualized home-based monitoring program enhanced by telerehabilitation based on non-immersive virtual reality (without the need for VR goggles or other "gadgets") (MUVITY) for patients who suffered a stroke in the subacute/chronic phase.

Patients seen during an outpatient consultation who require rehabilitation will be randomly assigned either the usual treatment (they will receive a document describing the exercises to perform and a suggested schedule, togheter with an app for communication and health-education, Nora) or the MUVITY treatment: patients will be provided with the telerehabilitation system using a computer and camera where they will perform the rehabilitation exercises, which will be individually adapted according to their progress by a physiotherapist, together with Nora. We believe that MUVITY will lead to improved motor function, emotional well-being, and quality of life, increasing adherence to rehabilitation treatment compared with usual care, and that it can be used in terms of patient satisfaction and pain levels.

Our findings could confirm that telerehabilitation improves motor function and quality of life after stroke. Furthermore, since it is a home-based system, its use would considerably increase the number of patients who can receive treatment compared with in-person therapies, eliminating geographic barriers related to distance from rehabilitation centers and offering cost-effective access to effective treatment for all patients. Additionally, our system allows continuous interaction between patients and healthcare professionals, and provides information about their progress, which helps reduce stress related to uncertainty about the future and supports key aspects of monitoring patients in the subacute/chronic phase of stroke such as risk factor control and early detection of complications.