Effectiveness of sensory and motor rehabilitation of the upper limb following the principles of neuroplasticity: Patients stable poststroke

Based on the principles of neuroplasticity , the purpose of this crossover study was to determine if improvement in upper extremity (UE) function and independence could be achieved inpatients 6 months to 7 years poststroke following an outpatient rehabilitation program (supervised 1.5 hours per week for 8 weeks reinforced with home gloving unaffected side and attended, graded, repetitive sensory and motor training activities). Twenty-one subjects (right or left hemiparesis; able to walk 100 feet with or without a cane; partially opened and closed the band; partially elevated the shoulder and elbow against gravity) were randomly assigned to Group A (sensory training 4 weeks, motor training 4 weeks) or Group B (motor training 4 weeks, sensory training 4 weeks), Greater than 20% (P <0.01) improvement was measured in functional independence and UE,function (fine motor. sensory discrimination, and musculoskeletal performance). Gains were hemispheric and training specific and maintained over 3 months. This study provides evidence documenting significant improvement in,function in the late poststroke recovery period following 12 hours of supervised learning based sensory motor training.