Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 30, 2026
A Rehabilitation Program of Exoskeleton-assisted Body Weight-Supported Treadmill Training with Non-immersive Virtual Reality for Stroke Patients
Published on: May 16, 2025
Virtual reality exercise improves mobility after stroke: an inpatient randomized controlled trial.
Daniel McEwen1, Anne Taillon-Hobson1, Martin Bilodeau1
1From the Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (D.M., A.T.-H., M.B., H.F.); School of Rehabilitation Sciences (D.M., M.B., H.S.), School of Human Kinetics (M.B., H.S., H.F.), and Faculty of Medicine (H.F.), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; and Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Elisabeth Bruyère Hospital, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (H.F.).
Virtual reality (VR) therapy improved balance and mobility in stroke survivors. This study found VR exercise enhanced outcomes for inpatient rehabilitation, suggesting wider clinical application.
Area of Science:
- Neurorehabilitation
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Virtual Reality Applications
Background:
- Virtual reality (VR) exercise has shown promise for improving balance in specific populations.
- Limited rigorous studies exist on VR's efficacy and safety for stroke survivors in inpatient rehabilitation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate if adjunct virtual reality (VR) therapy enhances balance, mobility, and gait in stroke rehabilitation inpatients.
- To determine the safety and applicability of VR interventions in this clinical setting.
Main Methods:
- A blinded randomized controlled trial involved 59 inpatient stroke survivors.
- The treatment group received standard therapy plus balance-challenging VR exercises; the control group received standard therapy plus non-challenging VR.
- Intervention included 10-12 daily 30-minute sessions over 3 weeks, with assessments pre-training, post-training, and 1 month later.
Main Results:
- The VR treatment group showed improved outcomes on the Timed Up and Go and Two-Minute Walk Test compared to the control group.
- Both groups achieved minimal clinically important differences post-training.
- Significantly more participants in the VR group demonstrated reduced lower extremity impairment (Chedoke McMaster Leg domain, P=0.04) immediately after training.
Conclusions:
- Virtual reality (VR) exercise intervention effectively improved mobility-related outcomes in stroke rehabilitation inpatients.
- Future research should explore VR for nonambulatory participants and strategies for clinical implementation.
