MOTION-UE Stroke

General

In our MOTION-UE Stroke study, we are investigating how impairments in arm and hand function following a stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) can be assessed in greater detail using modern digital methods. The study includes patients who have experienced an acute ischemic event and who either have newly developed mild to moderate impairments of the upper extremity or no clinically detectable motor impairment, in order to systematically compare different motor manifestations. The study is being conducted in collaboration with the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) in Bonn and the Department of Vascular Neurology at the University Hospital Bonn.

Mild impairments of arm and hand motor function are clinically relevant following a stroke or TIA, but are not always recorded with sufficient accuracy in routine clinical practice. In particular, subtle impairments in fine motor skills, coordination, or fatigue may remain undetected despite their high significance for activities of daily living.

The aim of the study is therefore to derive objective digital movement parameters from standardized video recordings and tablet-based tasks. These parameters are intended to help describe mild motor impairments more precisely and in a standardized manner and to better understand their relationships with clinical findings, imaging features, and the subjectively experienced impairment in daily life.

The study combines various clinical and digital assessment methods to capture arm and hand motor function after a stroke or TIA as comprehensively as possible. These include, in particular:

• Standardized video recordings used to document arm and hand movements during defined tasks.
• Tablet-based tasks designed to assess fine motor skills, coordination, and goal-directed movement sequences in particular.
• A structured clinical-neurological examination to assess strength, reflexes, muscle tone, and other motor functions.
• Questionnaires on functional limitations and quality of life to reflect the subjectively experienced impairment in daily life.
• Routine clinical data and imaging findings from standard care to correlate digital measurements with clinical and neuroanatomical characteristics.

By combining these different examination components, the aim is to obtain as comprehensive a picture as possible of arm and hand function and its significance for clinical practice.

After we have reviewed the inclusion and exclusion criteria and you have provided your consent, an examination will be conducted at the start of the study. This will involve

• standardized video recordings of arm and hand motor function, 
• tablet-based tasks assessing fine motor skills, 
• a clinical neurological examination, and 
• the completion of short questionnaires. 

In addition, we will collect relevant medical and demographic information as well as imaging findings from routine clinical care. 

Optionally, a follow-up will take place 90 days after the start of the study, during which the key assessments will be repeated to document changes over time.

Principal Investigator: Prof. Dr. Gabor Petzold
Start of the Study: 05/2026
Status: monocentric (DZNE Bonn), recruitment active

Study coordination / Contact:
DZNE Bonn
Universitätsklinikum Bonn - Klinik für vaskuläre Neurologie
Dr. Hannah Asperger
asperger.hannah(at)dzne.de
+49 228 287-15780