Virtual reality training for upper extremity in subacute stroke (VIRTUES): study protocol for a randomized controlled multicenter trial

Brunner et al. BMC Neurology 2014, 14:186 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2377/14/186 STUDY PROTOCOL Open Access Virtual reality training for upper extremity in subacute stroke (VIRTUES): study protocol for a randomized controlled multicenter trial Iris Brunner1,2*, Jan S Skouen1,2, Håkon Hofstad1,2, Liv I Strand1, Frank Becker3,4, Anne-Marthe Sanders3, Hanne Pallesen5, Tove Kristensen5, Marc Michielsen6 and Geert Verheyden7 Abstract Background: Novel virtual reality rehabilitation systems provide the potential to increase intensity and offer challenging and motivating tasks. The efficacy of virtual reality systems to improve arm motor function early after stroke has not been demonstrated yet in sufficiently powered studies. The objective of the study is to investigate whether VR training as an adjunct to conventional therapy is more effective in improving arm motor function in the subacute phase after stroke than dose-matched conventional training, to assess patient and therapist satisfaction when working with novel virtual reality training and to calculate cost-effectiveness in terms of resources required to regain some degree of dexterity. Methods/Design: Randomized controlled observer-blind trial. One hundred and twenty patients up to 12 weeks after stroke will be randomized to either a group receiving VR training or dose-matched and therapist attention-matched conventional arm training in addition to standard rehabilitation. During a period of four weeks the patients will be offered additional 4–5 training sessions a week of 45–60 minutes duration by a physiotherapist or an occupational therapist. Study outcomes: Arm motor function, dexterity and independence in daily life activities will be evaluated at baseline, post treatment and three months follow-up assessments with the Action Research Arm Test, Box and Blocks Test and the Functional Independence Measure, respectively. Patient and therapist satisfaction with the implementation of a VR rehabilitation system will also be assessed with questionnaires and interviews. Discussion: Virtual reality systems are promising tools for rehabilitation of arm motor function after stroke. Their introduction in combination with traditional physical and occupational therapy may enhance recovery after stroke, and at the same time demand little personnel resources to increase training intensity. The VIRTUES trial will provide further evidence of VR-based treatment strategies to clinicians, patients and health economists. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02079103 Keywords: Virtual reality, Stroke, Upper extremity, Rehabilitation, Motor function, Physical therapy, Occupational therapy * Correspondence: 1 Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway 2 Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway Full list of author information is available at the end of the article © 2014 Brunner et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated. Brunner et al. BMC Neurology 2014, 14:186 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2377/14/186 Background Early after stroke, approximately two thirds of all patients experience impaired motor function of an upper extremity [1,2]. Only 50% of cognitively intact and medically stable patients with initially reduced upper extremity motor function obtain satisfactory dexterity in the course of the first three months [1,2]. High intensity and large doses of task-related training with many repetitions have been identified as key factors for motor therapy after stroke [3]. Virtual reality (VR) therapy allows therapists to supervise several patients at the same time while providing more intensive training as compared to self-training. VR training has the potential to increase intensity, the range of possible training tasks and may also boost the motivation of patients by adding a playful element to therapy [4]. Learning is facilitated by providing an enriched environment, multisensory stimulation and direct visual or auditory feedback, which seems to be delivered by VR therapy [5]. Furthermore many systems allow for a graded adaption to increasing motor abilities, thus maintaining the challenging character of the tasks. VR in rehabilitation is a relatively novel approach, and its effectiveness is still under evaluation. Several small scale and proof of principle studies have been performed supporting the application of VR methods in upper limb rehabilitation [6-9]. The largest study to date, including an impressive number of 376 patients, supported the beneficial effect of VR rehabilitation [10]. However, the results have to be interpreted with caution since the patients were not randomized. Reviews by Laver et al. [11], Saposnik et al. [12] and, most recently, Fluet and Deutsch [4] found evidence for improvement of arm motor function and activities of daily living when comparing VR training to various control interventions. However, clinical evidence based on large-scale randomized controlled studies is lacking, especially for patients in the early phase after stroke, when maximal plasticity can be expected [13]. The objectives of this study are: 1. to investigate whether VR training as an adjunct to conventional therapy is more effective in improving arm motor function in the subacute phase after onset of stroke than dose- and therapist attention-matched conventional training; 2. to assess patient and therapist satisfaction when working with novel virtual reality training; 3. to calculate cost-effectiveness in terms of resources required to regain some degree of dexterity. Methods/Design Design This study is an international randomized controlled multicenter trial with five participating rehabilitation Page 2 of 5 centers in Denmark, Norway and Belgium. VR training will be compared to conventional upper limb rehabilitation. The VR and the control group will receive the same amount of therapist contact and training time as well as standard and patient-focused inpatient rehabilitation. Patient population All patients with stroke confirmed by clinical neuroimaging admitted for rehabilitation at the participating centers within 1 to 12 weeks after stroke will be considered for inclusion. They will be offered participation in the study if they fulfil the following eligibility criteria: – First ever ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke or former stroke without any residual motor impairment – 1 to 12 weeks post stroke – Impaired arm motor function but some residual arm motor (...truncated)