Therapies for Recovery of Hand Function After Stroke

March 2, 2026 updated by: Jayme Knutson, MetroHealth Medical Center

Contralaterally Controlled FES Versus Cyclic NMES for Hand Function After Stroke

After a stroke, it is very common to lose the ability to open the affected hand. The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of three different therapies on recovery of hand function after stroke and determine if any one is better than the other.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

A single-blinded randomized controlled trial will be carried out to assess and compare the effects of 12 weeks of Contralaterally Controlled Functional Electrical Stimulation (CCFES), Cyclic Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (cNMES), and Task Oriented Training. Dexterity, upper limb impairment, and activity limitation will be assessed at 0 (baseline), 12 (end of treatment), and 36 weeks. The treatment dose will be the same for all three groups: 10 sessions per week of self-administered treatment at home plus 2 sessions per week of group-specific occupational therapy in the lab.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

132

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Georgia
      • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30322
        • Emory University and Atlanta VA
    • Maryland
      • Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21205
        • Johns Hopkins University
    • New Jersey
      • West Orange, New Jersey, United States, 07052
        • Kessler Foundation
    • Ohio
      • Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44109
        • MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

21 years to 90 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 6 to 24 months since a first clinical cortical or subcortical, hemorrhagic or nonhemorrhagic stroke
  • unilateral upper limb hemiparesis with finger extensor strength of grade no more than 4 out of 5 on the Medical Research Council (MRC) scale
  • score of at least 1 and no more than 11 out of 14 on the hand section of the upper extremity Fugl-Meyer Assessment
  • adequate active movement of the shoulder and elbow to position the hand in the workspace for table-top task practice (necessary for the lab task practice sessions)
  • able to follow 3-stage commands
  • able to recall at least 2 of a list of 3 items after 30 minutes
  • skin intact on the hemiparetic arm
  • surface stimulation of the paretic finger and thumb extensors produces functional hand opening without pain (this will exclude those who have too much flexor spasticity)
  • able to hear and respond to cues from stimulator
  • not receiving occupational therapy (no concomitant OT)
  • full voluntary opening/closing of the contralateral (less affected) hand
  • demonstrates ability to follow instructions for operating the stimulator or have a caregiver who will assist them

Exclusion Criteria:

  • co-existing neurologic diagnosis of peripheral nerve injury, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, or multiple sclerosis
  • uncontrolled seizure disorder
  • brainstem stroke
  • uncompensated hemineglect
  • severe shoulder or hand pain
  • insensate forearm or hand
  • history of potentially fatal cardiac arrhythmias with hemodynamic instability
  • implanted electronic systems (e.g. pacemaker)
  • botulinum toxin injections to any upper extremity muscle within 3 months of enrolling
  • pregnant women due to unknown risks of surface NMES during pregnancy
  • lack of functional passive range of motion of the wrist or fingers of affected side
  • diagnosis (apart from stroke) that substantially affects paretic arm and hand function
  • deficits in communication that interfere with reasonable study participation
  • lacking sufficient visual acuity to see the stimulator's display
  • concurrent enrollment in another investigational study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: CCFES
Contralaterally Controlled Functional Electrical Stimulation (CCFES) uses an electrical stimulator and surface electrodes placed over the paretic finger and thumb extensors to deliver stimulation with an intensity that is proportional to the degree of opening of the contralateral unimpaired hand wearing an instrumented glove. Thus, volitional opening of the nonparetic hand produces stimulated opening of the paretic hand. During the lab visits, participants in the CCFES group will use CCFES to assist hand opening during occupational therapy task practice. During their home sessions, participants in the CCFES group will use CCFES to perform hand opening exercise.
Device: Electrical Stimulator
An electrical stimulator will be used to deliver electrical current through surface electrodes to produce hand opening by making the paretic finger and thumb extensor muscles contract. The stimulator can be programmed to turn on and off in a repetitive cyclic fashion (i.e., cNMES) or be programmed to deliver stimulation with an intensity that corresponds to the opening of a glove instrumented with sensors and plugged into the stimulator (i.e., CCFES).
Behavioral: Occupational Therapy
Task practice that requires movement and use of the paretic hand under the guidance of a trained therapist.
Active Comparator: cNMES
Cyclic Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (cNMES) uses an electrical stimulator and surface electrodes over the paretic finger and thumb extensors to deliver electrical stimulation to open the weak hand. The stimulation automatically turns on and off causing the weak hand to open repetitively for several seconds at a time. During the lab visits, participants in the cNMES group will receive occupational therapy task practice. During their home sessions, participants in the cNMES group will use cNMES to perform hand opening exercise.
Device: Electrical Stimulator
An electrical stimulator will be used to deliver electrical current through surface electrodes to produce hand opening by making the paretic finger and thumb extensor muscles contract. The stimulator can be programmed to turn on and off in a repetitive cyclic fashion (i.e., cNMES) or be programmed to deliver stimulation with an intensity that corresponds to the opening of a glove instrumented with sensors and plugged into the stimulator (i.e., CCFES).
Behavioral: Occupational Therapy
Task practice that requires movement and use of the paretic hand under the guidance of a trained therapist.
Active Comparator: Task Oriented Therapy
Task Oriented Therapy (TOT) focuses on practicing using the weak hand to practice activities of daily living tasks. During the clinic visits, participants in the TOT group will receive occupational therapy task practice. During their home sessions, participants in the TOT group will practice using their hand to complete a list of tasks given to them by the therapist to ensure that the participant receives a high dose of task practice.
Behavioral: Occupational Therapy
Task practice that requires movement and use of the paretic hand under the guidance of a trained therapist.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Box and Blocks Test (BBT) at 6 Months Post-Treatment
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
The BBT is a measure of hand dexterity. It is a count of how many blocks a patient can pick up, move over a barrier, and release in 60 seconds. The higher the score, the better the motor recovery.
Baseline to 6 months post-treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Upper Extremity Fugl Meyer (UEFM) at 6 Months Post-Treatment
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
The UEFM is a measure of upper limb motor impairment with a minimum score of 0 and maximum score of 66. The higher the score, the better the motor recovery.
Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
Change in Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) at 6 Months Post-Treatment
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
The ARAT is a measure of arm and hand function with a minimum score of 0 and maximum score of 57. The higher the score, the better the motor recovery.
Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
Change in Stroke Upper Limb Capacity Scale (SULCS) at 6 Months Post-Treatment
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
The SULCS is a measure of upper limb capacity with a minimum score of 0 and maximum score of 10. The higher the score, the better the motor recovery.
Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
Responder Rate
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months post-treatment
Proportion of participants who had a gain of at least 6 points on the UEFM
Baseline to 6 months post-treatment

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

MetroHealth Medical Center

Collaborators

Johns Hopkins University
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
The Cleveland Clinic
Emory University
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Kessler Foundation

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Jayme Knutson, PhD, MetroHealth Medical Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

February 15, 2019

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 16, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

October 16, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 20, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 20, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

July 2, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

March 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 2, 2026

Last Verified

March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB17-00884
  • R01HD092351 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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