Trial reportBehavioural neurology2020
Treatment Effects of Upper Limb Action Observation Therapy and Mirror Therapy on Rehabilitation Outcomes after Subacute Stroke: A Pilot Study.
Trial report in Behavioural neurology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 3 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 26 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Comparative Efficacy Study of Action Observation Therapy and Mirror Therapy After Stroke: Rehabilitation Outcomes and Neural Mechanisms by MEG
Long Term Effects of Action Observation Therapy and Mirror Therapy on Upper Limb Functional and Fine Motor Outcomes After Subacute Stroke
Comparison of 4-weeks of Motor Relearning Program and Mirror Therapy in Improving Upper Limb Motor Function in Stroke Patients.
Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of mirror therapy on motor and functional recovery of the upper extremity in subacute stroke: Systematic review and meta-analysis.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitation · 2025Pooled it
- Application of action observation therapy in stroke rehabilitation: A systematic review.Brain and behavior · 2023Pooled it
- Action observation for upper limb rehabilitation after stroke.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy and Safety of Mirror Therapy for Post-stroke Dysphagia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2022Pooled it
- Glutamatergic modulation of transcranial direct current stimulation over the premotor cortex combined with peripheral nerve stimulation promotes observation-execution-related cortical excitability and motor performance.The Journal of physiology · 2026Trial
- Action Observation Combined With Virtual Reality Promotes Motor Recovery After Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Stroke · 2026Trial
- Effects of mirror therapy preceding augmented reality in stroke rehabilitation: a randomized controlled trial.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2025Trial
- Impact of action observation therapy on motor and cognitive outcomes in older adults with mild cognitive impairment: a randomized controlled study.Frontiers in public health · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Effects of Meaningful Action Observation Therapy on Occupational Performance, Upper Limb Function, and Corticospinal Excitability Poststroke: A Double-Blind Randomized Control Trial.Neural plasticity · 2022Trial
- Observation of the Auxiliary Treatment Effect of Low-Frequency Nerve Therapy Instrument after Hysteroscopy for Moderate and Severe Intrauterine Adhesions Based on Intelligent Medical Treatment.Journal of healthcare engineering · 2022Trial
- Innovative upper extremity rehabilitation methods in stroke patients: a comparison of robotic rehabilitation and action observation therapy-a randomized trial.Frontiers in neurologyTrial
- Effectiveness of Neurological Physiotherapy Interventions in Post-stroke Motor Rehabilitation: A Systematic Review.Cureus · 2026Review
- Active Rehabilitation Technologies for Post-Stroke Patients.Biosensors · 2025Review
- Impact of Observation Duration in Action Observation Therapy: Manual Dexterity, Mirror Neuron System Activity, and Subjective Psychomotor Effort in Healthy Adults.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- Mirror therapy in the neuroadaptive training paradigm in rehabilitation and potential mechanisms of neural remodeling: a 20-year bibliometrics analysis.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- How does combining physical therapy with transcranial direct stimulation improve upper-limb motor functions in patients with stroke? A theory perspective.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2024Review
- Feasibility and efficacy of an early sensory-motor rehabilitation program on hand function in patients with stroke: a pilot, single-subject experimental design.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2024Article
- A computer-aid speech rehabilitation system with mirrored video generating.Technology and health care : official journal of the European Society for Engineering and Medicine · 2024Article
- "I've got a spring in my step" participants experience of action observation therapy and eccentric exercises, a telehealth study for mid-portion Achilles Tendinopathy: a qualitative study.Journal of foot and ankle research · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAction observation therapy and mirror therapy, two promising rehabilitation strategies, are aimed at enhancing the motor learning and functional improvement of stroke patients through different patterns of visual feedback and observation.
objectiveThis study investigated and compared the treatment effects of the action observation therapy, mirror therapy, and active control intervention on motor and functional outcomes of stroke patients.
methodsTwenty-one patients with subacute stroke were recruited in this study. All patients were randomly assigned to the action observation therapy, mirror therapy, or active control intervention for 3 weeks. Outcome measures were conducted at baseline, immediately after treatment, and at 3-month follow-up. The primary outcome was the Fugl-Meyer Assessment, and secondary outcomes included the Box and Block Test, Functional Independence Measure, and Stroke Impact Scale. Descriptive analyses and the number of patients whose change score achieved minimal clinically important difference were reported.
resultsBoth the action observation therapy and active control intervention showed similar improvements on the Fugl-Meyer Assessment, Box and Block Test, and Stroke Impact Scale. Moreover, the action observation therapy had a greater improvement on the Functional Independence Measure than the other 2 groups did. However, the mirror therapy group gained the least improvements on the outcomes.
conclusionThe preliminary results found that the patients in the action observation therapy and active control intervention groups had comparable benefits, suggesting that the 2 treatments might be used as an alternative to each other. A further large-scale study with at least 20 patients in each group to validate the study findings is needed. This trial is registered with NCT02871700.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.