Cortical Activation During Walking in Stroke

Cortical Activation During Forward and Backward Walking in Individuals With Chronic Stroke

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Observational

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT06840405

Enrollment

Registered

2025-02-21

Start date

2025-04-24

Completion date

2028-02-28

Last updated

2025-06-12

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Stroke

Keywords

Forward walking, Backward walking, Brain activity, Stroke

Brief summary

After stroke, damage to one cerebral hemisphere disrupts the normal balance of activity between the two hemispheres. The affected hemisphere typically exhibits reduced excitability, whereas the unaffected side may demonstrate increased excitability. This phenomenon, referred to as interhemispheric imbalance, further inhibits activity in the affected hemisphere, thereby restricting motor recovery. According to the interhemispheric competition model, enhancing excitability in the affected hemisphere and/or suppressing excitability in the unaffected hemisphere may contribute to the improvement of motor function in individuals with stroke. Furthermore, as motor function recovers, the balance of interhemispheric activation in motor-related cortical areas undergoes corresponding changes. Previous studies have shown that treadmill training enhances the excitability of the primary motor cortex in both hemispheres of stroke patients, as well as increases excitability across multiple cortical and subcortical regions in both hemispheres. However, it remains unclear whether treadmill training can normalize the interhemispheric imbalance in stroke patients. Additionally, the effects of forward and backward walking on the activity of motor-related brain regions in individuals with stroke are still unclear. Therefore, this cross-sectional study aims to investigate the changes in motor-related brain activity during forward walking and backward walking in individuals with chronic stroke.

Interventions

None listed

Study design

Observational model

CASE_CONTROL

Time perspective

CROSS_SECTIONAL

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

20 Years to 80 Years

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* ≥ 6 months after the diagnosis of stroke * Independent walking over at least 7m with or without a walking aid * Mini-mental state examination score ≥ 24

Exclusion criteria

* Had difficulty in backward walking * Any neuromuscular disorders history * With visual or auditory disorders * Unstable cardiac status or uncontrolled hypertension * Any musculoskeletal disorders that would affect walking ability

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Brain activity	One-time measurement during a one-minute walking task at a single study visit	Using functional near infrared spectroscopy to measure the oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HbR) in the bilateral prefrontal cortex, supplementary motor area and primary motor cortex.

Countries

Taiwan

Contacts

Primary ContactYea-Ru Yang, PhD

yryang@nycu.edu.tw+886228267279

Outcome results