Adaptive Dance Activities for People With Stroke (MDI)

Improving Participation in Stroke Survivors With Hemiparesis by Movement Improvisation Skill Building and Care Transition-friendly Adaptive Dance Activities: A Randomised Controlled Trial

The project will investigate the effects of a novel 12-week Movement Improvisation Skill-building and Adaptive Dance Intervention (MDI) on participation, balance, mobility, balance confidence, psychological well-being, and health-related quality of life in survivors with hemiparesis.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Stroke
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Movement Improvisation Skill-building and Adaptive Dance Intervention

Detailed Description

A 2-arm, assessor-blinded, randomised controlled trial will be conducted. Individuals who are 18-80 years old and have hemiparesis after a first-ever/recurrent ischaemic/haemorrhagic stroke will be recruited. The participants will be randomly allocated to the control group receiving usual care or the intervention group receiving MDI and usual care. Based on Bandura's principles of Self-efficacy and Outcome Expectation, MDI is an online/hybrid intervention aimed to assist survivors in developing body awareness, body sense, movement improvisational skills, and abilities in creating mental images of movements and balance during their transition of care from the acute settings to home. The outcomes will be assessed before the intervention, immediately post-intervention, and 3 and 6 months post-intervention.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 160
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Suzanne HS Lo, PhD; Phone Number: 852-39434485; Email: suzannelo@cuhk.edu.hk

Study Locations

• Hong Kong
  • Hong Kong, Hong Kong
    • Recruiting
    • Non-government organisations
    • Contact: Suzanne HS Lo, PhD; Phone Number: 852-39434485; Email: suzannelo@cuhk.edu.hk

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• a first-ever/recurrent ischaemic/haemorrhagic stroke confirmed by imaging tests,
• receiving in-patient care at an acute stroke unit,
• a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) total score of <16 (mild to moderate stroke),
• hemiparesis after stroke with the affected limb(s) scoring 1-3 on the NIHSS motor arm and/or motor leg items, respectively (drift to no effort against gravity),
• a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 2-4 (slight to moderately severe disability), and
• a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score of >2nd percentile.

Exclusion Criteria:

• transient ischaemic attack,
• subdural or epidural haemorrhage,
• cerebrovascular event due to brain tumour or a head injury,
• neurologic, orthopaedic, muscular, rheumatic or vestibular condition that can interfere with participation in the intervention such as seizure or spinal injury,
• mental condition such as depression or schizophrenia, or
• visual or auditory impairment that cannot be corrected by visual/hearing aids.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Usual care
Experimental: Movement Improvisation Skill-building and Adaptive Dance Intervention; The MDI is a hybrid in-person/online intervention aimed at developing body awareness, body sense, movement improvisational skills, and the ability to create mental images of movements and balance among stroke survivors with hemiparesis.	Other: Movement Improvisation Skill-building and Adaptive Dance Intervention; The MDI is a hybrid in-person/online intervention aimed at developing body awareness, body sense, movement improvisational skills, and abilities in creating mental images of movements and balance among stroke survivors with hemiparesis.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in the level of participation in daily and social activities	The Reintegration to Normal Living Index (Chinese version) will be used to assess participants' participation in daily and social activities.	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in the level of balancing ability	The 14-item Mini- Balance Evaluation Systems Test will be used to measure participants' anticipatory postural adjustments, reactive postural control, sensory orientation, and dynamic gait.	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention
Change in the level of mobility	The 6-minute walk test (MWT) will be performed according to the American Thoracic Society guidelines.	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention
Change in the level of balance confidence	The Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale (Chinese version) will be used to assess participants' confidence in balance when performing 16 daily functional activities.	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention
Change in the level of psychological well-being	Participants' emotional well-being will be measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (Chinese version).	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention
Change in the level of health-related quality of life	The EuroQoL 5 Dimension (Chinese version) will be used. It contains 5 dimensions (mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/ discomfort, anxiety/depression),	From baseline to immediately, 3 months and 6 months post-intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Chinese University of Hong Kong

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 1, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2029

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 9, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 9, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): May 15, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 15, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 9, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Stroke; Randomised controlled trial; Participation; Hemiparesis; Dance
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neurologic Manifestations; Cerebrovascular Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Stroke; Paresis
• Other Study ID Numbers: 14618024

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: The information will be provided on request.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No