StrokeHMRPASNCT07522463
Enhancing Attention and Processing Speed Through Home-based Music Rehabilitation Program After Stroke in Malaysia
A study testing Musical Home-based Rehabilitation Program in people with Stroke and Attention, run by University of Malaya at 1 site in Malaysia.
Trial summary
Stroke often leads to significant cognitive impairment, impacting quality of life. While existing rehabilitation options exist, there's a need for innovative, accessible, and patient-centered solutions. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages Up to 75 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Stroke, Attention, Rehabilitation Program
- What is being tested?
- Musical Home-based Rehabilitation Program
- Could I receive a placebo?
- Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
- How many people
- 44 participants
- Where
- 1 siteMalaysia
- Study dates
- 1 Sep 2026to 31 Dec 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages Up to 75 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Age < 75 years
- First-episode stroke within the last 12 months
- Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) of 15- 25, with impairment defined as failure to achieve the prespecified minimum score on the attention-related MoCA items.
- Sufficient cognitive ability to follow multi-step instructions
- Functional use of at least one upper limb to perform musical/rhythmic movements
- Medically stable with the ability to maintain an upright sitting position with good balance
Who cannot join
- Uncontrolled psychiatric or behavioural disorders that may interfere with participation
- Uncontrolled seizures or epilepsy
- Significant aphasia or hemispatial neglect
- Severe visual or visual field deficits
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Malaysia1 site
Universiti Malaya Medical Centre
Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, 50603
MAZLINA MAZLAN MAZLAN, MBBS, +603-79675181, mazlinamazlan@um.edu.my
About this study
Official title: Enhancing Attention and Processing Speed Through Home-based Music Rehabilitation Program After Stroke in Malaysia: A Feasibility Random Controlled Study
Stroke often leads to significant cognitive impairment, impacting quality of life. While existing rehabilitation options exist, there's a need for innovative, accessible, and patient-centered solutions. Research suggests music can engage multiple brain networks associated with sensory and motor processes, cognition, and affective regulation, potentially enhancing cognitive functions like attention and processing speed as well. Home-based interventions have also demonstrated positive impacts on rehabilitation adherence and outcomes. Building on this foundation, this study proposes to develop and pilot test a home-based musical rehabilitation program to improve attention and processing speed in Malaysian stroke survivors.
Read the detailed description
Stroke often leads to significant cognitive impairment, impacting quality of life. While existing rehabilitation options exist, there's a need for innovative, accessible, and patient-centered solutions. Research suggests music can engage multiple brain networks associated with sensory and motor processes, cognition, and affective regulation, potentially enhancing cognitive functions like attention and processing speed as well. Home-based interventions have also demonstrated positive impacts on rehabilitation adherence and outcomes.
Building on this foundation, this study proposes to develop and pilot test a home-based musical rehabilitation program to improve attention and processing speed in Malaysian stroke survivors. Using a randomized controlled trial, the program's feasibility and preliminary effectiveness will be evaluated. Participants will undergo cognitive assessments at baseline, post-intervention, and follow-up, complemented by qualitative data collection to understand patient experience.
The anticipated outcomes include a culturally relevant, accessible home-based program tailored for Malaysian stroke survivors, preliminary evidence on the program's impact on attention and processing speed, insights into its feasibility and acceptability, and a foundation for a larger-scale randomized controlled trial. This research has the potential to transform stroke rehabilitation in Malaysia by offering an innovative, patient-centered approach that utilizes music therapy to enhance cognitive recovery and improve quality of life.
- Conditions
- Stroke, Attention, Rehabilitation Program, Music Intervention
- Being tested
- Musical Home-based Rehabilitation Program, Control group (standard care)
- Keywords
- Attention, Processing Speed, Home-based Music Rehabilitation Program, Stroke, Malaysia
- Medical subject headings
- Stroke
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Musical Home-based Rehabilitation ProgramOther
The intervention session will last approximately 40 minutes, comprising: (1) 3-5 minutes of attentional priming; (2) approximately 30 minutes of rhythm-action training; and (3) approximately 5 minutes for rest, feedback and session recording. Participants will complete five sessions per week for four consecutive weeks (20 sessions), consistent with recommendations for intensive, repetitive stroke rehabilitation and previous music-based intervention protocols.⁴¹-⁴³ During rhythm-action training, participants will strike corresponding desk bells in response to visual notation and auditory cues at 60 or 90 beats per minute. Responses will be classified as correct when the appropriate bell is struck within the designated beat interval; errors include incorrect, omitted, additional or mistimed strikes.
Task difficulty will be reviewed weekly and adjusted by varying tempo, rhythmic complexity, number of tones or cueing. Participants will progress after achieving ≥80% accuracy across two cons
Control group (standard care)Other
Participants in both groups will continue usual multidisciplinary stroke rehabilitation at the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, UMMC. The intervention group will receive the home-based music rehabilitation programme in addition to usual care, while the control group will receive usual care alone. Outpatient rehabilitation is typically provided twice weekly for approximately 45 minutes per session, with frequency and content individualised according to clinical needs. Cognitive rehabilitation may include attention and memory training, executive function exercises, communication and language therapy, and functional cognitive activities integrated into daily living. Therapy type, frequency and duration will be documented throughout the study.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Experimental: Home-Based Music-based Intervention Rehabilitation Program | Experimental | The intervention session will last approximately 40 minutes and will comprise: (1) attentional priming for 3-5 minutes; (2) rhythm-action training for approximately 30 minutes; and (3) a brief rest, feedback and session-recording period for approximately 5 minutes. Participants will be prescribed five sessions per week for four consecutive weeks, giving a total of 20 sessions. This dosage is consistent with stroke rehabilitation recommendations promoting intensive, repetitive practice and with intervention durations used in previous music therapy studies and protocols after stroke. Receives: Other: Musical Home-based Rehabilitation Program |
| Placebo Comparator: Control group | Placebo comparator | Participants in the control and intervention groups will continue to receive the usual multidisciplinary stroke rehabilitation programme as prescribed by their treating rehabilitation team at the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, UMMC. The intervention group will receive the home-based music rehabilitation programme in addition to usual rehabilitation, whereas the control group will receive usual rehabilitation alone.
At UMMC, outpatient rehabilitation is typically delivered approximately twice weekly, with sessions lasting about 45 minutes, although frequency and content are individualised according to clinical need. Usual cognitive rehabilitation may include attention, memory and executive function training, communication and language therapy, and functional cognitive activities. Receives: Other: Control group (standard care) |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Test of Everyday Attention
Test of Everyday Attention (TEA) is designed for adults aged 18 to 80 years. Rather than a single global scale, it evaluates distinct attentional systems through eight separate subtests, yielding individual raw scores, percentiles, and scaled scores converted via age-normed data.
Measured: 4 months
Trail Making Test (TMT A and B)
Trail Making Tests are tests of speed for attention, sequencing, mental flexibility, visual search, and motor function.
Measured: 4 months
Digit Span (Forward and Backward)
Forward Digit Span (FDS) assesses short-term, auditory memory, while Backward Digit Span (BDS) tests working memory and central executive processing.
Measured: 4 months
Stroop Test
The Stroop test assesses a person's ability to inhibit cognitive interference, measure selective attention, and evaluate processing speed. It requires participants to name the ink color of a written word while ignoring the word's actual meaning (such as naming "blue" when the word "red" is printed in blue ink)
Measured: 4 months
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted13 Apr 2026
- Study start1 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion30 Jun 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for StrokeStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Quadruple blind
- Who is masked
- Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 44 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Malaya
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Wen Fen Beh, PhD, Principal investigator, Universitiy of Malaya
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07522463
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- Home-based Program
- Other IDs
- BKP018-2024-ECRG
- Acronym
- HMRPAS
- Status last verified
- Mar 2026
- First submitted
- 27 Mar 2026
- Last updated
- 19 Aug 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Beh WF, Wang F, Choong FC, Yap KH, Mazlan M. Enhancing attention and processing speed through home-based music rehabilitation programme after stroke in Malaysia: a feasibility randomised controlled trial protocol. BMJ Open. 2026 Sep 22;16(9):e121081. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2026-121081.
PubMed 42772871