Effectiveness of mirror therapy on lower extremity motor recovery, balance and mobility in patients with acute stroke: A randomized sham-controlled pilot trial

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of mirror therapy on lower extremity motor recovery, balance and mobility in patients with acute stroke. Design: A randomized, sham-controlled, assessor blinded, pilot trial. Setting: Inpatient stroke rehabilitation unit. Subjects: First time onset of stroke with mean post-stroke duration of 6.41 days, able to respond to verbal instructions, and Brunnstrom recovery stage 2 and above were enrolled. Intervention: Mirror therapy group performed 30 minutes of functional synergy movements of non-paretic lower extremity, whereas control group underwent sham therapy with similar duration. In addition, both groups were administered with conventional stroke rehabilitation regime. Altogether 90 minutes therapy session per day, six days a week, for two weeks duration was administered to both groups. Outcome Measures: Lower extremity motor subscale of Fugl Meyer Assessment (FMA), Brunnel Balance Assessment (BBA) and Functional Ambulation Categories (FAC). Results: Amongst the 22 patients included, equal number of patients participated in mirror group (N = 11) and control group (N = 11). Baseline variables were similar in both groups, except for Brunnstrom recovery stage. There was no statistical difference between groups, except for FAC. (FMA: P = 0.894; BBA: P = 0.358; FAC: P = 0.02). Significance was set at P < 0.05. Conclusion: Administration of mirror therapy early after stroke is not superior to conventional treatment in improving lower limb motor recovery and balance, except for improvement in mobility.