Sensory Electrical Stimulation for Recovery of Hand and Arm Function in Stroke Patients: A Review of the Literature

As reported in a recent review, the most promising interventions for restoring function of the arm seem to be high-repetition doses of task-oriented training, such as constraint-induced movement therapy [3]. However, constraint-induced movement therapy requires considerable clinical staff input and a long treatment time, which makes clinical introduction impractical [4]. In fact, the reality of stroke rehabilitation is that at present patients receive only limited taskoriented training [5]. Novel concepts beyond the current strategies such as combinations of cortical stimulation and robotic training [6] for hand and arm motor rehabilitation are therefore needed for the treatment of stroke patients [7].