Telerehabilitation in post-stroke care: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

This meta-analysis introduces tele-medicine in time-sensitive conditions like stroke and the challenges hindering at-home rehabilitation. It aims to consolidate evidence supporting telerehabilitation effectiveness in post-stroke patients, with a focus on ADL, balance, mobility, and motor control.

We conducted a meta-analysis using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane central databases was conducted. Inclusion criteria involved studies that employed randomized controlled trial (RCT) designs, specifically evaluating various telerehabilitation models in patients diagnosed with a stroke, excluding those with mixed etiology and non-randomized or single-arm designs. Two independent reviewers assessed study quality and bias using Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 before inclusion.

We included 10 studies (n = 417) with a predominantly male sample (n = 196). The mean age of the pooled sample of 8 studies was 64.87 (13.01) years. Our meta-analysis showed that telerehabilitation may have modest effects on Berg Balance Scale (SMD 0.08 [-0.23; 0.40]; p = 0.54), and trunk impairment scale (SMD 0.26 [-1.00; 1.52]; p = 0.05), slightly inferior effects on Barthel index (SMD -0.34 [-1.00; 0.32]; p = 0.31), but demonstrated a favorable impact on trunk impairment (SMD -0.21 [-1.18; 0.76]; p = 0.02).

We found that telerehabilitation may have modest effects on balance and mobility, and slightly inferior results in Activities of daily living but may have a positive effect on trunk impairment. However, more studies with larger cohorts are needed to confirm our results.