Objective
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 such as dressing and walking, in addition to instrumental activities of daily life such as shopping and cooking. Participation in regular physical activity is strongly recommended for individuals with stroke to maintain their functional level and prevent secondary conditions and a recurrent stroke. However, recent findings suggest that people with stroke do not perform enough physical activity.
Virtual Reality (VR) enables the interaction with virtual objects in virtual environments which encourages movement and motivates the participant. The use of VR for rehabilitation has been reported to have potential for individuals with stroke.
The aim of this proposed study is to assess the effectiveness of VR therapy to promote the participation in daily physical activity of individuals with stroke. A Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) comparing VR therapy to traditional therapy will be applied for Step 1 (Community) and Step 2 (Home). 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.
Fields of science
Call for proposal
FP7-PEOPLE-2010-RG
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
MC-IRG - International Re-integration Grants (IRG)Coordinator
69978 Tel Aviv
Israel