SynthesisQuality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation2026
Effects of nonpharmacological interventions on post-stroke quality of life: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression.
Synthesis in Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Abstract
purposeStroke remains a leading cause of long-term disability, with survivors experiencing a substantial decline in their health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Although nonpharmacological interventions (NPIs) are known to improve HRQoL, which modalities are most effective and which design characteristics maximize HRQoL outcomes remains unclear. This compared the effects of different NPI types and identified key design determinants, particularly intervention duration, using meta-regression.
methodsPubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and CINAHL were searched for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in English between January 2000 and July 2025. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs involving adult stroke survivors testing education/self-management, exercise/physical training, or psychological/emotional interventions, with HRQoL measured using validated instruments. Meta-regression analyses examined the influence of intervention type and duration on HRQoL improvement. Study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment (risk of bias 2.0) were performed independently by two reviewers.
resultsThirty-two RCTs were analyzed. NPIs significantly improved HRQoL compared to that in controls. Psychological/emotional interventions showed the greatest effect compared to education/self-management and exercise. Meta-regression identified intervention duration as a critical determinant of effectiveness, with programs lasting ≥ 12 weeks yielding significantly greater HRQoL improvements than shorter interventions.
conclusionsBeyond confirming the overall benefits of NPIs, this study demonstrates that both intervention modality and duration are key design determinants of HRQoL improvement after stroke. These findings provide evidence-based guidance on how nonpharmacological rehabilitation programs should be structured—highlighting the importance of psychosocial components and sustained intervention duration—to maximize quality-of-life outcomes in stroke survivors. REGISTRATION: The protocol for this review was prospectively registered with the Open Science Framework on October 3, 2025 ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/Q8VUD ).
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.