Table 1.
The main characteristics of the reviewed studies.
| References | Sample size (n) | Sex (M/F) | Age (years), M ±SD | Type of stroke (hemorrhagic/ ischemic) | stroke site (left/ right/ bilateral) | Disease duration | Outcome | Adverse events |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Du and Wu (2005) | G1:30 G2:30 | 34/26 | 57.6 ± 10.8 | – | 15/10/5 16/10/4 | – | MMSE MBI | No |
| 2. Kim et al. (2010) | G1:6 G2:6 G3:6 | 2/4 4/2 4/2 | 68.3 ± 7.4 53.5 ± 16.9 66.8 ± 17.2 | 1/5 2/4 1/5 | – | 404.4 ± 71.7days 241.2 ± 42.5day 69.7 ± 39.0days | MBI | No |
| 3. Lu et al. (2015) | G1:19 G2:21 | 12/7 13/8 | 42.5 ± 12.3 47.3 ± 11.8 | 11/8 11/10 | 1/8/0 1/10/0 | 67 ± 30days 56 ± 30days | LOTCA MoCA | Dizziness |
| 4. Liu (2017) | G1:18 G2:18 | 11/7 9/9 | 65.33 ± 7.05 62.61 ± 9.98 | 13/5 12/6 | – | 253.2 ± 53.7 days 279.9 ± 49.2 days | MMSE | No |
| 5. Liu et al. (2020) | G1:29 G2:29 | 10/19 16/13 | 58.6 ± 6.2 57.7 ± 7.3 | 9/20 15/14 | 11/18/0 14/15/0 | 8.7 ± 1.8 months 8.6 ± 1.8 months | MMSE | NR |
| 6. Yin et al. (2020) | G1:16 G2:18 | 14/2 16/2 | 56.7 ± 12.9 58.2 ± 11.3 | 5/11 6/12 | 4/6/6 6/7/5 | 52 ± 38.3 days 55 ± 39.5 days | MoCA | No |
| 7. Li et al. (2020) | G1:15 G2:15 | 7/8 9/6 | 65.5 ± 3.7 64.5 ± 4.7 | – | 5/10/0 6/9/0 | 22.7 ± 8.1days 19.1 ± 7.9 days | MMSE MoCA | Dizziness Headaches |
| 8. Tsai et al. (2020) | m G1:11 G2:15 G3:15 | 9/2 11/4 13/2 | 57.5 ± 12.3 60.1 ± 14.1 56.2 ± 12.0 | 3/8 7/8 10/5 | 11/0/0 15/0/0 15/0/0 | 33.3 ± 26.4 months 18.8 ± 20.2 months 38 ± 7.9 months | RBANS | No |
| 9. Li et al. (2021) | G1:33 G2:32 | 12/21 19/13 | 61.8 ± 5.5 59.5 ± 6.6 | 22/11 18/14 | 15/18/0 13/19/0 | 28.6 ± 12.6 days 27.8 ± 11.0 days | MoCA MBI | No |
| 10. Fregni et al. (2006) | G1:10 G2:5 | 8/2 3/2 | 57.70 ± 11.2752.60 ± 12.56 | – | 8/2/0 4/1/0 | 105.6 ± 87.9 days 119.1 ± 79.2 days | MMSE | Anxiety Tiredness mild headache |
| 11. Chu et al. (2022) | G1: 21 G2: 20 | 18/3 13/7 | 57.24 ± 14.03 66.75 ± 12.23 | 8/13 8/12 | 12/9/0 13/7/0 | 4.00 ± 5.00 months 6.00 ± 4.00 months | MBI LOTCA | No |
| 12. Li et al. (2022) | G1:28 G2:30 | 16/12 18/12 | 69.5 ± 12.7 66.0 ± 15.6 | 10/18 16/14 | 12/16/0 6/24/0 | 25 ± 9.19 days 25 ± 8.49 days | MMSE | Sneezing |
G1, group 1; G2, group 2; G3, group 3; n, number; M, male; F, female; LF, low frequency; “–”, not given; NR, not reported, MMSE, Mini-Mental Status Examination; MBI, Modifed Barthel Index; MoCA, Montreal Cognitive Assessment; RBANS, Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsyehological Status.