Effects of mirror therapy on the motor and functional recovery of post-stroke paretic upper limbs: a systematic review

ABSTRACT After a stroke upper limbs may display motor deficits that could lead to functional disability. Mirror therapy (MT) is a therapeutic tool in the rehabilitation of upper limbs (UL). This study aimed to bring together evidence to show the main effects of MT in the motor recovery of paretic upper limbs after a stroke. An electronic search on the Lilacs, Scielo, PubMed, PEDro and ScienceDirect databases was performed, in accordance with the inclusion criteria: clinical trials, in which individuals should have had a stroke of any etiology and in any stage of recovery, with UL impairment, published in full in journals indexed in those databases, between 2010 and 2015, in English or Portuguese, using MT for the rehabilitation of these patients’ UL, with motor function and functional independence as main outcomes. The remaining articles were evaluated with the PEDro scale to assign their methodological quality a score. Thirteen clinical studies evaluated the effects of MT in the motor function and functional independence of the upper limbs after a stroke. Fugl-Meyer scale and the Functional Independence Measure were frequently used in the studies, which showed that MT is efficient in upper limb motor recovery and functional independence, especially concerning transferring and self-care. Regarding the methodological evaluation, the articles were considered as having moderate or high quality. In conclusion, MT promotes significant improvement of the motor function and functional independence of paretic upper limbs after a stroke, regardless of the time elapsed after the encephalic lesion.