Effects of Home-Based Versus Clinic-Based Rehabilitation Combining Mirror Therapy and Task-Specific Training for Patients With Stroke: A Randomized Crossover Trial

Abstract Objective We investigated the treatment effects of a home-based rehabilitation program compared with clinic-based rehabilitation in patients with stroke. Design A single-blinded, 2-sequence, 2-period, crossover-designed study. Setting Rehabilitation clinics and participant's home environment. Participants Individuals with disabilities poststroke. Interventions During each intervention period, each participant received 12 training sessions, with a 4-week washout phase between the 2 periods. Participants were randomly allocated to home-based rehabilitation first or clinic-based rehabilitation first. Intervention protocols included mirror therapy and task-specific training. Main Outcome Measures Outcome measures were selected based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. Outcomes of impairment level were the Fugl-Meyer Assessment, Box and Block Test, and Revised Nottingham Sensory Assessment. Outcomes of activity and participation levels included the Motor Activity Log, 10-meter walk test, sit-to-stand test, Canadian Occupational Performance Measure, and EuroQoL-5D Questionnaire. Results Pretest analyses showed no significant evidence of carryover effect. Home-based rehabilitation resulted in significantly greater improvements on the Motor Activity Log amount of use subscale ( P =.01) and the sit-to-stand test ( P =.03) than clinic-based rehabilitation. The clinic-based rehabilitation group had better benefits on the health index measured by the EuroQoL-5D Questionnaire ( P =.02) than the home-based rehabilitation group. Differences between the 2 groups on the other outcomes were not statistically significant. Conclusions The home-based and clinic-based rehabilitation groups had comparable benefits in the outcomes of impairment level but showed differential effects in the outcomes of activity and participation levels.