Acquired brain injury (ABI) individuals have shown greater engagement and functional recovery when trained in virtual reality (VR)-assisted rehabilitation therapies. After developing an activities of daily living (ADL)-focused VR system in a prior study, this related follow-up study aims to test the efficacy and impact of this VR system on upper-limb rehabilitation outcomes of ABI individuals when routinely integrated into treatment plans.
After completion of informed consent, patients will undergo screening assessments to determine eligibility for study participation. All eligible participants integrate VR into rehabilitation treatment plans twice per week for 12 weeks. Graphical complexity increases progressively throughout the study: "Simple" in Weeks 1-4, "Standard" in Weeks 5-8, and "Complex" in Weeks 9-12. Assessments are conducted at pre-intervention and post-intervention.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
The virtual reality (VR) training tool simulates cooking, an activity of daily living (ADL). The layout of VR environments intentionally place ingredients, tools, and the recipe book far away from the user to require gross upper-limb physical movements. Successful step completion requires reaching to obtain ingredients or turn book pages, grabbing to hold or release objects, and chopping, scooping, stirring, and pouring motions to prepare food items. The VR tool includes three versions of varying graphical complexity: Simple, Standard, and Complex. Complexity is controlled by stimuli count and detail level. For example, Simple features an empty room with monotone colors, basic shapes, and no extra features. In contrast, Complex resembles a fully-fledged kitchen with color patterns, textures, background details, and sounds.
Indiana University Health, Neurorehabilitation & Robotics
Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity
The Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) is a physical performance impairment index that evaluates motor recovery. Domains of motor function, sensation, balance, range of motion, and pain are measured on a 3-point ordinal scale. The upper extremity (UE) section score ranges from 0 to 66, with higher scores indicating less impairment.
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention), Week 6, and End-of-Study (post-intervention, Week 13)
Stroke Impact Scale
The Stroke Impact Scale (SIS) holistically evaluates quality of life after a stroke. The SIS-16 version is a self-report questionnaire that assesses the ability to perform daily physical activities on a 5-point Likert scale. Score ranges from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better capacity and milder stroke impact.
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and End-of-Study (post-intervention, Week 13)
Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living
The Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) Scale uses self-reported information to assess performance during independent living. Topics vary and include tasks such as phone use, shopping, housekeeping, and medication management. Score ranges from 0 (low function and dependent) to 8 (high function and independent). Scoring differs by gender due to known differences in IADL performance.
Time frame: Baseline (pre-intervention) and End-of-Study (post-intervention, Week 13)
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