Efficacy of Treadmill Walking With Hidden Vision for Rehabilitation in the Subacute Phase of Stroke

Launched by CENTRE HOSPITALIER RÉGIONAL METZ-THIONVILLE · May 12, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying the effects of treadmill walking with and without vision on recovery for people who have recently had a stroke. The goal is to find out whether walking on a treadmill while wearing an opaque mask (which blocks vision) can help improve balance and walking ability more effectively than walking with your eyes open. The trial will include 36 participants who are between 18 and 74 years old and have had a stroke within the last six months. To be eligible, participants should be able to walk on a treadmill for 20 minutes with some support, maintain balance both with their eyes open and closed, and have a physiotherapy prescription for stroke rehabilitation.

Participants will take part in treadmill training sessions for 20 minutes, three times a week for six weeks. They will be grouped into two: one group will walk with their vision blocked, while the other will walk with their eyes open. Throughout the study, the researchers will measure changes in walking speed, balance, and body awareness. This study is important because it may show how temporarily blocking vision can help improve rehabilitation outcomes after a stroke, potentially leading to better recovery for patients.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • 1. 18 years of age or older,
• • 2. With a confirmed diagnosis of ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke in sub-acute phase (stroke less than 6 months old),
• • 3. With NIHSS scores between 1 and 15 and MoCA scores between 18 and 30
• • 4. With a physiotherapy prescription for post Stroke rehabilitation
• • 5. Able to walk for 20 min on a treadmill with weight reduction with pauses, able to maintain bipodal balance, able to maintain bipodal balance with eyes open and closed for 30 seconds,
• • 6. Having expressed free, informed and written consent
• • 7. Affiliated with a social security scheme.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • 1. Patients weighing over 200 kg (maximum weight permitted for use of the Lite Gait ®),
• 2. Patients with impaired vision:
• • 1. Best corrected visual acuity below 5/10 on patient examination
• • 2. Homonymous lateral hemianopia, quadranopia.
• • 3. Inability to physically participate in intensive rehabilitation due to severe, unstabilized and comorbidities (heart, lung, kidney disease or diabetes), severe psychiatric disorders cancer active or under treatment.
• • 4. Patients participating in other interventional research,
• • 5. Pregnant or breast-feeding women,
• • 6. Patients under guardianship.