Upper Limb Stroke Rehabilitation Using Surface Electromyography: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Area of Science:

• Neurorehabilitation
• Biomedical Engineering
• Clinical Trials

Background:

• Upper limb impairment is a significant challenge post-stroke, often limiting functional recovery.
• Surface electromyography (sEMG) technologies are increasingly used in stroke rehabilitation.
• Evidence on the comparative effectiveness of different sEMG-driven interventions for upper limb function in stroke survivors is lacking.

Approach:

• A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted on randomized clinical trials.
• Studies were identified through searches of PubMed, SCOPUS, and PEDro databases.
• Interventions were assessed for their impact on upper limb function using the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA-UE).

Key Points:

• The review included 24 studies with 808 participants, showing good to fair methodological quality.
• Meta-analysis revealed no significant difference in upper limb function improvement between sEMG and non-sEMG interventions (SMD 0.14, P=0.37).
• Comparing different sEMG intervention protocols also showed no significant difference (SMD 0.42, P=0.23).

Conclusions:

• This meta-analysis could not establish the superiority of sEMG interventions over non-sEMG interventions for improving upper limb function in stroke.
• While sEMG shows potential for enhancing functional recovery, current evidence is inconclusive.
• Larger, high-quality randomized clinical trials are necessary to determine the efficacy of specific sEMG interventions in stroke populations.