BCIwiki (bciwiki.com) — A team at Tianyou Hospital, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, China, reviewed motor imagery-based BCI training for post-stroke upper limb dysfunction. Published online in Brain Impairment on July 23, 2026, the systematic review included 27 studies; 24 studies involving 846 participants contributed to the meta-analyses.
MI-BCI translates electroencephalographic signals generated during imagined limb movements into commands for real-time interaction with external devices. The researchers searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science and Embase through March 2026 for randomised controlled trials addressing post-stroke upper limb motor impairment. The systematic review included 27 studies, with 24 studies involving 846 participants contributing to the meta-analyses.
Compared with the respective control conditions in the included studies, MI-BCI training yielded a standardised mean difference of 0.31 on the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity, with a 95% confidence interval of 0.18–0.45 and I² = 17%. For the Wolf Motor Function Test, the standardised mean difference was 0.45, with a 95% confidence interval of 0.24–0.66 and I² = 39%. Both results were statistically significant. Standardised mean differences express standardised between-group differences, not raw scale points or percentage improvements; I² describes heterogeneity between studies.
The authors interpret the findings as supporting improvements in some aspects of upper limb motor function, particularly isolated movement and fine motor control. Effects on complex functional activities, activities of daily living and spasticity were not statistically significant in the current evidence. They also caution that control conditions differed across studies and included sham interventions, preventing definitive conclusions about superiority over standardised traditional rehabilitation.