Virtual Reality Intervention for Stroke Rehabilitation

In Israel there are approximately 16,000 new cases of stroke per year and recently stroke has been recognized by the Israeli health-care policy planners as a top priority disease. Individuals who have sustained a stroke constitute a large population with significant needs for rehabilitation. The most common symptom following stroke is paresis or paralysis to half of the body, contralateral to the side of brain lesion. These individuals experience difficulties performing basic activities of daily life (BADL) such as dressing and walking, in addition to instrumental activities of daily life (IADL) such as shopping and cooking.

Physical activity has been strongly recommended for these individuals to maintain their functional level which was achieved during rehabilitation. In addition regular physical activity can prevent secondary conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity and decreases the risk of a recurrent stroke. Reduced physical activity can also lead to disuse atrophy and cardiovascular de-conditioning, which can result in deterioration of the person's physical condition. However, recent findings suggest that people with stroke do not perform enough physical activity with their upper and lower extremities.

The use of Virtual Reality (VR) for rehabilitation has been found to have potential for encouraging active purposeful movement. Many researchers have assessed the feasibility & usability of different VR systems and environments for individuals with stroke. Costly VR systems in addition to off-the-shelf video game consoles (e.g. Sony PlayStation EyeToy, Nintendo Wii) have been found to have great potential to encourage active purposeful movement. However, to date, only a limited number of studies have investigated the effectiveness of VR therapy post-stroke.

Since physical activity has been recognized to be a main factor in facilitating recovery post stroke and an important factor in preventing a recurrent stroke and due to the fact that individuals with stroke are not participating sufficiently in physical activity. Their physical and functional ability may deteriorate leading to expensive hospitalization and devastating outcomes, therefore, I suggest to carry out this study.

STUDY OBJECTIVES:

The overall aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of using novel technology of VR therapy to promote the participation in daily physical activity of individuals with stroke. A 'Community based' VR program will be compared to a traditional therapy program in promoting daily physical activity of the lower and upper extremities.

METHODS:

A Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) comparing VR therapy to traditional therapy will be applied. Eligible participants will be randomly allocated to the experimental or the control group. Blind assessors will assess their ability pre and post a 3-month intervention and at 3-month follow-up. Novel instrumentation of VR systems and video-game consoles will be applied for the intervention of the experimental group and accelerometers (that measure the intensity and duration of movement) will be utilized for assessing 'free-living' daily physical activity of the upper and lower extremities of both groups. In addition clinical assessments will be administered to assess the motor and functional ability of these individuals.

The main hypotheses are:

• Daily walking post intervention will increase significantly more in the VR therapy groups compared to the traditional therapy groups.
• Daily use of the weak upper extremity post intervention will increase significantly more in the VR therapy groups compared to the traditional therapy groups.
• Daily walking on follow-up will be significantly higher in the VR therapy groups compared to the traditional therapy groups.
• Daily use of the weak upper extremity on follow-up will increase significantly more in the VR therapy groups compared to the traditional therapy groups.

Secondary hypotheses;

• Post intervention and on follow-up, the motor and functional ability of the weak upper extremity of the individuals in the VR therapy group will improve significantly more compared to the motor and functional ability of the weak upper extremity of individuals in the traditional therapy group.
• Post intervention and on follow-up, the motor and functional ability of the weak lower extremity and balance of the individuals in the VR therapy group will improve significantly more compared to the individuals in the traditional therapy group.
• Participation in ADL post intervention and on follow-up will be significantly higher in the VR therapy groups compared to the traditional therapy groups.
• The executive functions of the individuals post intervention and on follow-up will be significantly higher in the VR therapy group compared to the traditional therapy group.

Inclusion criteria

• Individuals who have sustained a stroke at least 6 months prior to the study.
• Are living in the community.
• Are not receiving rehabilitation treatments.
• Are experiencing difficulty using their legs and/or arms
• Are able to walk 10 meters (with or without assistance)
• Able to understand and follow simple instructions and to sign the informed consent form (assessed using MMSE score < 20/30 points).
• Are willing to commit to attend two treatment sessions per week for 3 months.

Exclusion criteria

• Have suffered in the past from epilepsy seizures
• Have a neurological or orthopedic condition other than stroke that prevented independence in walking and BADL prior the stroke.
• Have uncontrolled high blood pressure or unstable cardio-vascular condition (according to a letter from the family doctor).
• Have vision deficits that cannot be corrected with glasses