Mirror therapy applied to functional recovery of post-stroke patients: An overview.

Autores

  • Coelho-Silva Coelho-Silva Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil.
  • Sergio Machado Laboratory of Physical Activity Neuroscience, Neurodiversity Institute, Queimados-RJ, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8946-8467
  • Douglas Farias Fonseca Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8395-7434
  • William Riciere Pedon Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1197-683X
  • Weder Alves Silva Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7677-4710
  • Cezimar Borges Department of Physical Education, Goiatuba University, Goiatuba, Goiás, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7524-9906
  • Ronaldo Ferreira Moura Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9250-8455
  • Pedro Augusto Inacio Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9354-1460
  • Adolfo Cameia Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil.
  • Ygor Martins-Lima Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil.
  • Marcelo Magalhães Sales Graduate Program in Environment and Society (PPGAS) of the State University of Goiás (UEG); Southwest Campus - Headquarters Quirinópolis. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3814-6964
  • Ivanéria Mendonça Martins Graduate Program in Environment and Society (PPGAS) of the State University of Goiás (UEG); Southwest Campus - Headquarters Quirinópolis.
  • Else Saliés Fonseca Graduate Program in Health Sciences at the Federal University of Goiás (UFG), Goiânia, Brazil
  • Eduardo da Matta Mello Portugal Graduate Program in Physical Education at Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7268-7847
  • Alberto Souza Sá Filho Graduate Program at Evangelical University of Goiás (UniEVANGÉLICA), Anápolis, Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9434-4231

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37951/2674-9181.2025v7i1.8850

Palavras-chave:

Terapia, AVC, Feedback Visual, Reabilitação

Resumo

Mirror therapy emerged from the use of visual feedback to induce kinesthetic sensations and has since been explored as a simple, low-cost, and non-invasive strategy for neurorehabilitation. Although the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying its effects remain incompletely understood, they are likely related to interactions between visual feedback, somatosensory processing, motor imagery, mirror neuron activity, and cortical sensorimotor plasticity. In post-stroke hemiparesis, mirror therapy may help restore the disrupted relationship between intended movement and visual perception, potentially reducing learned non-use and facilitating motor relearning. This commentary provides an overview of the theoretical basis and clinical relevance of mirror therapy for functional recovery after stroke, highlighting its potential as an adjunctive rehabilitation strategy while recognizing the need for clearer patient selection criteria and more rigorous mechanistic investigation.

Referências

Altschuler EL, Wisdom SB, Stone L, Foster C, Galasko D, Llewellyn DM, Ramachandran VS. Rehabilitation of hemiparesis after stroke with a mirror. Lancet. 1999;353(9169):2035-2036. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(99)00920-4

Ramachandran VS, Rogers-Ramachandran D. Synaesthesia in phantom limbs induced with mirrors. Proc Biol Sci. 1996;263(1369):377-386. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1996.0058

Rizzolatti G, Craighero L. The mirror-neuron system. Annu Rev Neurosci. 2004;27169-192. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.neuro.27.070203.144230

Ramachandran VS, Rogers-Ramachandran D, Stewart M. Perceptual correlates of massive cortical reorganization. Science. 1992;258(5085):1159-1160. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1439826

Sutbeyaz S, Yavuzer G, Sezer N, Koseoglu BF. Mirror therapy enhances lower-extremity motor recovery and motor functioning after stroke: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2007;88(5):555-559. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2007.02.034

Yavuzer G, Selles R, Sezer N, Sutbeyaz S, Bussmann JB, Koseoglu F, Atay MB, Stam HJ. Mirror therapy improves hand function in subacute stroke: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2008;89(3):393-398. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2007.08.162

di Pellegrino G, Fadiga L, Fogassi L, Gallese V, Rizzolatti G. Understanding motor events: a neurophysiological study. Exp Brain Res. 1992;91(1):176-180. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00230027

Garrison KA, Winstein CJ, Aziz-Zadeh L. The mirror neuron system: a neural substrate for methods in stroke rehabilitation. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2010;24(5):404-412. https://doi.org/10.1177/1545968309354536

Thieme H, Morkisch N, Mehrholz J, Pohl M, Behrens J, Borgetto B, Dohle C. Mirror therapy for improving motor function after stroke. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018;7(7):CD008449. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD008449.pub3

Ryan D, Fullen B, Rio E, Segurado R, Stokes D, O'Sullivan C. Effect of Action Observation Therapy in the Rehabilitation of Neurologic and Musculoskeletal Conditions: A Systematic Review. Arch Rehabil Res Clin Transl. 2021;3(1):100106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arrct.2021.100106

Ertelt D, Small S, Solodkin A, Dettmers C, McNamara A, Binkofski F, Buccino G. Action observation has a positive impact on rehabilitation of motor deficits after stroke. Neuroimage. 2007;36 Suppl 2T164-173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2007.03.043

Dohle C, Pullen J, Nakaten A, Kust J, Rietz C, Karbe H. Mirror therapy promotes recovery from severe hemiparesis: a randomized controlled trial. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2009;23(3):209-217. https://doi.org/10.1177/1545968308324786

Mohan U, Babu SK, Kumar KV, Suresh BV, Misri ZK, Chakrapani M. Effectiveness of mirror therapy on lower extremity motor recovery, balance and mobility in patients with acute stroke: A randomized sham-controlled pilot trial. Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2013;16(4):634-639. https://doi.org/10.4103/0972-2327.120496

Rothgangel AS, Braun SM, Beurskens AJ, Seitz RJ, Wade DT. The clinical aspects of mirror therapy in rehabilitation: a systematic review of the literature. Int J Rehabil Res. 2011;34(1):1-13. https://doi.org/10.1097/MRR.0b013e3283441e98

Samuelkamaleshkumar S, Reethajanetsureka S, Pauljebaraj P, Benshamir B, Padankatti SM, David JA. Mirror therapy enhances motor performance in the paretic upper limb after stroke: a pilot randomized controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2014;95(11):2000-2005. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2014.06.020

Michielsen ME, Selles RW, van der Geest JN, Eckhardt M, Yavuzer G, Stam HJ, Smits M, Ribbers GM, Bussmann JB. Motor recovery and cortical reorganization after mirror therapy in chronic stroke patients: a phase II randomized controlled trial. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2011;25(3):223-233. https://doi.org/10.1177/1545968310385127

Zhang JJQ, Fong KNK, Welage N, Liu KPY. The Activation of the Mirror Neuron System during Action Observation and Action Execution with Mirror Visual Feedback in Stroke: A Systematic Review. Neural Plast. 2018;20182321045. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/2321045

Downloads

Publicado

2026-05-18

Como Citar

Coelho-Silva, C.-S., Machado, S., Fonseca, D. F., Pedon, W. R., Silva, W. A., Borges, C., … Sá Filho, A. S. (2026). Mirror therapy applied to functional recovery of post-stroke patients: An overview. International Journal of Movement Science and Rehabilitation, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.37951/2674-9181.2025v7i1.8850

Edição

Seção

Artigos