Effect of Virtual Reality Therapy for the Enhancement of Upper Limb Functions in Patients with Stroke

BACKGROUND: Stroke, a prevalent cause of disability and mortality globally, presents significant challenges to healthcare systems, especially in emerging nations. Innovations like virtual reality (VR) technology offer promising solutions in stroke rehabilitation. This study delves into VR's role in stroke rehabilitation, synthesizing evidence to assess its impact on motor function and therapy outcomes, aiming to guide clinical practice and future research directions. OBJECTIVE: To find the effectiveness of virtual reality therapy for the enhancement of upper limb functions after stroke METHODS: 30 Participants with Middle Cerebral Artery stroke who met the requirements was enrolled in the study with permission from their caregiver or legal guardian. The upper limb motor assessment scale was used to gather the samples. A record of the pre-test value was made. STUDY GROUP: The participants received 30 minutes of virtual reality therapy in a day for 3 sessions a week for 4 weeks. In order to improve upper limb functions, the intervention was monitored using motor assessment scale for upper extremities functions. The post-test results were given, and the scores were reevaluated. RESULT: Result shows that there is a significant improvement in upper limb functions by using the virtual reality therapy. Therefore, statistical analysis indicated a statistically significant difference (p value <0.0001) in pre and post-test. CONCLUSION: From the result obtained from the study, it can be concluded that virtual reality therapy shows significant effect on improving upper limb functions in patients with stroke. KEY WORDS: virtual reality, stroke, upper limb enhancement.