Effect of mirror use on lower extremity muscle strength of patients with chronic stroke.
Myoung-Kwon Kim, Yu-Won Choe, Young-Jun Shin and 2 others
PMID 29545680WHAT IT FOUND
Lower-limb strengthening increased knee muscle strength in all three groups of chronic stroke patients.
Adding a mirror to the exercise did not produce significantly greater strength gains than exercising without one.
Key findings
01Muscle strength of knee extensors and flexors significantly increased in all subjects after intervention.
02No significant differences in muscle strength were found among the control group and the two mirror-therapy groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was underpowered with only ten participants per group. The intervention intensity may have been too low to detect a difference between groups, as the authors note the exercise was modified for age and disease duration. The study focused on chronic stroke patients, and the authors suggest mirror therapy might be more effective in acute or subacute stages, limiting generalisability to earlier recovery phases.
Declared interests
The study was supported by a Daegu University Research Grant.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that mirror therapy is ineffective for stroke rehabilitation based on this study. The results only show it did not add significant strength benefits to a specific lower-limb exercise programme in chronic patients. Mirror therapy may still have other motor or sensory effects not measured here.