Background: Mirror neurons represent a variety of neurons that fire when the subject executes a motor act or observes others making the same action. A lot of therapeutic applications based on the existence of mirror neurons are widely used today in the field of stroke rehabilitation. Objectives: To summarize the best evidence of the effectiveness of mirror neuron applications for improving motor function, activities of daily living, spasticity, pain, visuospatial neglect, sensation, quality of life and muscle power in the stroke patients. Methods: We searched the following electronic databases: Pubmed (October 2017), Cochrane Library (November 2017) and PEDro (November 2017). We also checked the reference lists. We included Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) that compare mirror neuron applications (mirror therapy, motor imagery/mental practice, action observation therapy or virtual reality reflection therapy) with conventional physical or occupational therapy for patients after stroke. Then we selected the trials that match the inclusion criteria, and we assessed the methodological quality of studies and extracted data. Finally, we analyzed the results by pooling the data of change scores between pre-and post-intervention through calculation of the overall Standardized Mean Differences (SMDs) with 95% Confidence Interval (CI). Results: We included 44 studies with a total of 1792 participants. Of the 44 studies, 4 interventions based on mirror neurons were studied. Firstly, mirror therapy may have a significant effect on motor function of the upper extremity; however, effects on motor function are influenced by the variation of mirror therapy, activities of the unaffected limb showed greater effect than bilateral activities. We found limited evidence for improving walking ability. Secondly, motor imagery/mental practice showed a significant improvement on the motor function specially for the lower extremity functions. Thirdly, we found limited evidence of action observation therapy in improving motor function of the upper extremity, walking ability. Finally, we included only one study that used virtual reality reflection therapy in stroke rehabilitation, so we didn't include it in the pool analysis. Conclusion: There is an evidence from the included RCTs on the effectiveness of mirror therapy on improving motor
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.