Visual Stimulation Through Video Therapy to Enhance Lower Limb Motor Recovery After Stroke

Overview

This pilot study evaluates video therapy for lower limb motor recovery after stroke, an approach remains insufficiently documented. This single-center pilot study uses a Single-Case Experimental Design (SCED) to evaluate the effects of intensive video therapy combined with conventional rehabilitation in patients with subacute or chronic post-stroke hemiparesis. Twelve participants will be included and allocated to different baseline durations according to a multiple-baseline SCED design. The primary outcome is functional mobility, assessed using the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, measured repeatedly throughout baseline, intervention, and follow-up phases.

Stroke frequently results in persistent lower limb motor impairment affecting gait and functional mobility (1-2). While video-based therapies have shown proof of concept for upper limb rehabilitation after stroke, their effectiveness for lower limb motor recovery remains insufficiently documented (3-5). This study is a single-center pilot trial using a Single-Case Experimental Design (SCED) with multiple baseline durations, chosen to account for the high interindividual variability observed in subacute and chronic post-stroke patients undergoing rehabilitation (6). This design allows each participant to serve as their own control through repeated measurements over time (6). Participants are included between 1 month and 1 year post-stroke while receiving inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation in a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation department. All participants initially undergo a control phase combining standardized rehabilitation with sham video therapy (placebo condition). The duration of this baseline phase is randomized (1, 2, or 3 weeks) across participants. The experimental phase consists of 5 weeks of intensive video therapy added to usual care, with five sessions per week. A post-intervention sham phase is followed by a follow-up period lasting up to 21 weeks post-intervention, with repeated assessments conducted at weeks 13, 17, and 21 to evaluate maintenance of treatment effects. The primary objective is to evaluate changes in functional mobility, assessed using repeated measurements of the Timed Up and Go test. Secondary objectives include evaluation of gait endurance, motor impairment, muscle tone, balance, and quality of life .