Effect of brain-computer interface combined with upper limb rehabilitation robot on upper limb function of stroke patients

Objective To explore the effect of motor imagery brain-computer interface (BCI) combined with upper limb rehabilitation robot on upper limb function of stroke patients. Methods From May to December, 2024, 45 stroke inpatients from Xuzhou Rehabilitation Hospital and Xuzhou Central Hospital were recruited and randomly divided into BCI group (n = 15), robot group (n = 15) and combined group (n = 15). All the groups received conventional rehabilitation therapy. On this basis, the BCI group received motor imagery based BCI training, the robot group received upper extremity rehabilitation robot training, and the combined group received BCI combined with upper extremity rehabilitation robot training. They were assessed with Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Upper Extremities (FMA-UE), Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) and modified Barthel Index (MBI) before and four weeks after treatment, while they were measured delta-alpha ratio (DAR) using the quantitative electroencephalogram. Results The intra-group effect (F ＞ 101.870, P ＜ 0.001) and interaction effect (F ＞ 7.891, P ＜ 0.001) were significant in the scores of FMA-UE, ARAT and MBI, and DAR. Post Hoc test showed that all the indexes were better in the combined group than in BCI group and the robot group (P ＜ 0.05), and there was no significant difference in the indexes between BCI group and the robot group (P ＞ 0.05). Conclusion BCI combined with upper limb rehabilitation robot can promote the recovery of upper limb function and activities of daily living of stroke patients.