| Objective: To investigate the effect of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) combined with occupational therapy on upper limb motor function recovery in stroke patients. Methods: Totally，25 subjects were recruited and randomly assigned to either the observation group (n=13) or the control group (n=12), both receiving conventional rehabilitation therapy. Additionally, the control group underwent occupational therapy techniques including upper limb robotics, hand function robotics, and therapeutic occupational activities. The observation group received taVNS in addition to the interventions in the control group, concurrently. The Fugl-Meyer assessment of upper extremity (FMA-UE), action research arm Test (ARAT), fatigue severity scale (FSS), activities of daily living (ADL), transcranial magnetic stimulation motor-evoked potentials, and functional near-infrared spectroscopy activation were compared before and after 4 weeks of treatment. Results: After 4 weeks of treatment, the FMA-UE, ARAT, and ADL scores in both groups increased compared to those before treatment (P<0.05). Moreover,the observation group showed a more significant increase in FMA-UE, ARAT, and ADL scores than the control group (P<0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in FSS scores between and within groups pre- and post-treatment. The latency of MEPs in the observation group was significantly reduced post-treatment compared to pre-treatment (P<0.05), and the latency was also shorter in the observation group than that in the control group (P<0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in MEP amplitude pre- and post-treatment or between groups. Post-treatment, the observation group showed significant activation in the sensory-motor cortex and the prefrontal cortex compared to the control group (PFDR<0.05). Conclusion: Occupational therapy contributes to the enhancement of upper limb function, improves the ability of daily living, and the combination of taVNS with occupational therapy demonstrates superior activation of the brain’s somatosensory and motor cortices, facilitating neuroplasticity. |
