ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT06143475Updated Nov 22, 2023

Functional Proprioceptive Stimulation of the Upper Limbs in Stroke Patients

An interventional study of FPS group and Conventional therapy group in Stroke, Motor Disorders and Upper Extremity Paresis, sponsored by Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health. Completed at 1 site in Russian Federation. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2023-11-22.

Sponsored by Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 2 years 8 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Feb 2021, registered Nov 2023).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
60
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Parallel-group, single-blinded controlled clinical trial. The study involved stroke patients (no more than 3 points on a scale Rankin) dived of the control group and experimental group. Control group received daily sessions of conventional physical therapy. In addition to the same conventional physical therapy treatment, the participants of the experimental group underwent repetitive upper limb Functional Proprioceptive Stimulations (FPS) sessions.

Read the detailed description

Motor impairments are one of the main disabilities for stroke survivors. It includes a variety of symptoms: muscle weakness, reduce motor control, proprioception and touch, lack of endurance, spastic paresis, pathological synergies and clonuses. These impairments deeply limit their participation in everyday life activities and reduce the likelihood of a return to independence and professional activities. Restoring, maintaining or even enhancing effective sensorimotor interactions are essential for motor recovery. To do so, the use of Functional Proprioceptive Stimulation (FPS) could be a very good option. These FPS are focal vibrations applied to the musculotendinous junction. It activates the muscle spindles, i.e. stretch receptors that signal the length and changes in length of muscles. FPS then produce sensation of muscle lengthening and cause perception of movement. These FPS can also initiate the movement felt. FPS transmit information to the brain in a way that is similar to the information exchange process that occurs normally during movement, even the patient is not moving at all. In doing so, the FPS are able to maintain the patient's sensorimotor interactions, activate similar patterns of cerebral activation to those evoked by real movement. Synchronized multiple localized vibration pattern can induce the perception of complex movements like gait or drawing movements, representing a safe and effective option for rehabilitation purpose. It has been demonstrated for stroke patient that, combine with physical therapy, focal vibration could improve the stability of the proximal arm, increase motor function of the upper limb, or increase the quality of selective motor control.

In the current study, the objective was to assess the efficacy of repetitive sessions of FPS in facilitating upper limb function recovery among stroke patients with a Modified Rankin scale score of 3, over a three-week rehabilitation period.

Stroke patients participated in the study in Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health in Moscow, Russia. The study was approved by a local ethic committee and followed principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.

Parallel-group, single-blinded controlled clinical trial. The study involved stroke patients (no more than 3 points on a scale Rankin) dived of the control group and experimental group. Control group received 12 daily sessions (30 minutes, 5 times a week) of conventional physical therapy. In addition to the same conventional physical therapy treatment, the participants of the experimental group underwent repetitive upper limb FPS sessions (apparatus "Vibramoov" (Techno Concept, France)). The patients received in total 12 Vibramoov sessions of 30 minutes, 5 times a week. Before and after the course of rehabilitation procedures, the condition of the upper extremities was assessed in patients of both groups (muscle tone, muscle strength, clinical scales).

02

Conditions studied

  • Stroke
  • Motor Disorders
  • Upper Extremity Paresis
  • Muscle Weakness
  • Vibration; Exposure

Keywords

  • functional proprioceptive stimulation
  • rehabilitation
  • spasticity
  • stroke
03

In context

Stroke

8,255 studies on the registry are indexed under Stroke; 2,056 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 60 is above the median of 49 across 6,024 interventional studies indexed under Stroke.

Browse Stroke studies →

Lead sponsor

Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health is the lead sponsor of 8 studies on the registry; 4 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • early recovery period after newly diagnosed cerebral stroke (from 2 weeks to six months post event)
  • hospital stay 18-21 days
  • 3 points on the Modified Rankin Scale
  • muscle tone more than 1 point on the Ashworth scale
  • signed

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • presence in the rehabilitation program of other robotic methods
  • violation of skin integument
  • floating thrombosis
  • pronounced cognitive deficit
  • epilepsy
  • refusal to participate in the study
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Triple (Participant, Care provider, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
60 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    FPS group

    In the FPS group, in addition to same physical therapy ran in the control group, the patient received FPS from the apparatus "Vibramoov" (Techno Concept, France) on their upper limbs. The patients received in total 12 Vibramoov sessions of 30 minutes, 5 times a week.

    Device: FPS group

  • Active comparator
    Conventional therapy group

    In the conventional therapy group patients received sessions of traditional physical therapy: individual therapy sessions including exercises to strengthen muscles, stretching, reflex exercises for large, medium and small muscle groups of the upper limbs (ontogeny-oriented kinesiotherapy (OOKT), PNF - proprioceptive neuro-muscle facilitation, training and practice of functional rational self-service tasks). 12 sessions in total were realized 5 times a week and lasted 40 minutes each.

    Other: Conventional therapy group

Interventions

  • DeviceFPS group

    Vibration frequency ranged from 0 to 100 Hz. There were 3 modes of FPS application during rehabilitation course. 1) anti-spasticity mode (FV): the stimulators were placed in the middle of the muscles of the affected limb (i.e. unilaterally); 2) bilateral mode of proprioceptive facilitation; and 3) the unilateral mode of the proprioceptive facilitation. The 2 first sessions were realized with bilateral FPS stimulations plus the anti-spasticity FV mode to reduce the level of hypertonia. Then for 6 consecutive sessions unilateral FPS stimulations of the affected sides imitating the drawing of a straight lines (horizontal, vertical, diagonal), preparing for writing (drawing a circle, triangle, square, spiral) were realized. At last, the 4 remaining FPS sessions were realized unilaterally imitating and promoting the realization of everyday life activities.

  • OtherConventional therapy group

    Patients received sessions of traditional physical therapy: individual therapy sessions including exercises to strengthen muscles, stretching, reflex exercises for large, medium and small muscle groups of the upper limbs (ontogeny-oriented kinesiotherapy (OOKT), PNF - proprioceptive neuro-muscle facilitation, training and practice of functional rational self-service tasks). 12 sessions in total were realized 5 times a week and lasted 40 minutes each.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Muscle strength

    Muscle strength was assessed using the MRC (Medical Research Council Weakness Scale). MRC is a commonly used scale for assessing muscle strength from Grade 5 (normal) to Grade 0 (no visible contraction). Paresis is defined as light at compliance with strength 4 points, moderate - 3 points, pronounced - 2 points, rough - 1 point and with - 0 points.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

  2. Muscle tone

    To assess muscle tone the MAS - Modified Ashworth Scale was used. Scores range from 0 to 4, where lower scores represent normal muscle tone and higher scores represent spasticity.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale for upper extremity assessment

    Functionality of the upper limbs were assessed using the FMA - Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale for upper extremity assessment (FMA-UE). In this study, we used 36 items of the upper arm (proximal musculature, FMA-UA), 24 items of wrist and hand (distal musculature, FMA-W/H), 6 items of aspects of coordination, 12 items of aspects of sensation, 24 items of aspects of passive joint movement, 24 items of joint pain. So the maximum total score on this FMA-UE scale was 126 points.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

  2. Frenchay Arm Test

    Frenchay Arm Test is designed to assess the motor skills of the upper limbs with central paresis \[29\]. This test includes five tasks, for each successfully completed task the patient receives 1 point, for unfulfilled - 0 points, maximum 5 points.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

  3. The Action Research Arm Test (ARAT)

    The Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) is a 19 item observational measure used by physical therapists and other health care professionals to assess upper extremity performance (coordination, dexterity and functioning) in stroke recovery, brain injury and multiple sclerosis populations. Scores on the ARAT may range from 0-57 points, with a maximum score of 57 points indicating better performance.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

  4. The Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS)

    The Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) it is a digital version of the visual-analog scale (Visual Analog Scale for pain, VAS). It is a horizontal line, 10 cm long, with numbers from 0 to 10 located on it, where 0 is "no pain", 5 is "moderate pain" and 10 is "the strongest pain imaginable".

    Time frame: Change from baseline at 3 weeks

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health
    Moscow, 117997, Russian Federation
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Feb 2021 to primary completion in Apr 2023, 25 months.

Of 3,108 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Stroke, half reached primary completion within 23 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 46. This study's 25 months is close to that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 3,252 studies reached it within 23 months; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 46.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Nov 16, 2023
First posted
Nov 22, 2023
StartActual
Feb 20, 2021
Primary completionActual
Apr 5, 2023
CompletionActual
Oct 29, 2023
Last update
Nov 22, 2023
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Nov 22, 2023, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06143475
Lead sponsor
Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 22, 2023
Start date
Feb 20, 2021
Primary completion
Apr 5, 2023
Completion
Oct 29, 2023
Last update
Nov 22, 2023

Study contacts

Galina Ivanova, Prof
study chair · Federal Center of Cerebrovascular Pathology and Stroke, Russian Federation Ministry of Health

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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