Tactile Sensation Improves Following Motor Rehabilitation for Chronic Stroke: The VIGoROUS Randomized Controlled Trial.

Up to 85% of people with chronic stroke experience somatosensory impairment, which contributes to poor sensorimotor control and non-use of the affected limb. Neurophysiological mechanisms suggest motor rehabilitation may improve tactile sense post-stroke, however, somatosensory recovery has rarely been reported in controlled trials. To compare the effect of four upper limb motor rehabilitation programs on the recovery of tactile sensation in adults with chronic stroke.

Video game rehabilitation for outpatient stroke (VIGoROUS): A multi-site randomized controlled trial of in-home, self-managed, upper-extremity therapy.

Background: Integrating behavioral intervention into motor rehabilitation is essential for improving paretic arm use in daily life. Demands on therapist time limit adoption of behavioral programs like Constraint-Induced Movement (CI) therapy, however. Self-managed motor practice could free therapist time for behavioral intervention, but there remains insufficient evidence of efficacy for a self-management approach.

Video Game Rehabilitation for Outpatient Stroke (VIGoROUS): protocol for a multi-center comparative effectiveness trial of in-home gamified constraint-induced movement therapy for rehabilitation of chronic upper extremity hemiparesis.

Background: Constraint-Induced Movement therapy (CI therapy) is shown to reduce disability, increase use of the more affected arm/hand, and promote brain plasticity for individuals with upper extremity hemiparesis post-stroke. Randomized controlled trials consistently demonstrate that CI therapy is superior to other rehabilitation paradigms, yet it is available to only a small minority of the estimated 1.2 million chronic stroke survivors with upper extremity disability.