Abstract
Objectives Sensory and motor alterations resulting from stroke often impair the performance and learning of motor skills. The present study is aimed at investigating whether and how poststroke individuals and age- and sex-matched healthy controls benefit from a contextual interference effect on the practice of a maze task (i.e., constant vs. random practice) performed on the computer. Methods Participants included 21 poststroke individuals and 21 healthy controls, matched by sex and age (30 to 80 years). Both groups were divided according to the type of the practice (constant or random) presented in the acquisition phase of the learning protocol. For comparison between the groups, types of practice, and blocks of attempts, the analysis of variance with Tukey's post hoc test (p < 0.05) was used. Results Poststroke individuals presented longer movement times as compared with the control group. In addition, only poststroke individuals who performed the task with random practice showed improved performance at the transfer phase. Moreover, randomized practice enabled poststroke individuals to perform the transfer task similarly to individuals without any neurological impairment. Conclusion The present findings indicated a significant effect of contextual interference of practice in poststroke individuals, suggesting that applying randomized training must be considered when designing rehabilitation protocols for this population.
Highlights
IntroductionA variety of rehabilitation programs take advantage of knowledge from motor learning research to optimize the improvement of functional abilities in poststroke individuals [4,5,6]
Stroke is a consequence of blood flow obstruction or hemorrhage in the encephalon [1], which often leads to neurological damage associated with functional limitations and/or disabilities [2] such as cognitive, sensorimotor, and/or language disorders [3].A variety of rehabilitation programs take advantage of knowledge from motor learning research to optimize the improvement of functional abilities in poststroke individuals [4,5,6]
Regardless of the approach or intervention technique, the rehabilitation program shall be designed to comprise a set of internal processes associated with practice, training, or experience that results in relatively permanent changes in the performance of motor skills [7, 8]
Summary
A variety of rehabilitation programs take advantage of knowledge from motor learning research to optimize the improvement of functional abilities in poststroke individuals [4,5,6]. Regardless of the approach or intervention technique, the rehabilitation program shall be designed to comprise a set of internal processes associated with practice, training, or experience that results in relatively permanent changes in the performance of motor skills [7, 8]. In a recent systematic review, Shishov et al [5] pointed out that the very broad types of protocols and measurements used to assess motor learning in poststroke individuals make it difficult to synthesize research findings across studies. The authors emphasize the need to promote more studies in order to improve the knowledge of the organization of practice during poststroke rehabilitation.
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