Evaluating the Effect of Mirror Therapy on Cognitive Neuroplasticity and Motor Recovery in Stroke Rehabilitation
Enhancing Recovery Through Mirror Therapy
Keywords:
Cognitive Neuroplasticity, Mirror Therapy, Motor Recovery, Stroke Rehabilitation, Upper Limb FunctionAbstract
Background: Stroke commonly leads to significant motor impairments through cortical damage. Mirror therapy (MT), utilizing visual feedback to stimulate motor cortex activity, has shown promise as a neuroplasticity-enhancing intervention for motor recovery. This study investigated mirror therapy's effects on neuroplastic changes and functional motor outcomes in post-stroke patients during rehabilitation.
Methods: We conducted a randomized controlled trial with 40 post-stroke patients (ages 40–70) presenting upper limb motor deficits. Participants were randomly allocated to mirror therapy (Group A) or task-oriented training (Group B). Both groups received 6-week interventions, 5 sessions weekly. Cognitive neuroplasticity was measured using Trail Making Tests (TMT) assessing attention, visual search, and executive function. Motor function evaluation included Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity (FMA-UE) and Action Research Arm Test (ARAT).
Results: All 40 patients (mean age 58.7±7.9 years) completed the intervention. While both groups demonstrated significant within-group improvements (p<0.001), mirror therapy showed superior effectiveness over task-oriented training. TMT improvements significantly favored mirror therapy: TMT-A (-26.3±8.9 vs -14.4±7.2 seconds, p<0.001); TMT-B (-43.8±12.7 vs -19.5±9.8 seconds, p<0.001). Motor assessments similarly favored mirror therapy: FMA-UE (+15.8±4.3 vs +10.7±3.9 points, p<0.001); ARAT (+13.8±3.7 vs +8.8±4.1 points, p<0.001). Effect sizes were large across measures (Cohen's d: 1.25-2.12).
Conclusion: Mirror therapy demonstrated clear superiority over task-oriented training for enhancing cognitive neuroplasticity and motor recovery in stroke patients. These results suggest mirror therapy provides comprehensive benefits addressing multiple post-stroke impairment aspects simultaneously, supporting its integration into standard rehabilitation protocols for upper limb motor deficits.
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