Aphasia Physical EXercise Study: Randomized Trial
High-intensity Exercise in Stroke Recovery: Randomized Trial
University of California, Berkeley
120 participants
Dec 1, 2025
INTERVENTIONAL
Conditions
Summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate the effects of a high-intensity exercise program on recovery in individuals with post-stroke aphasia. The high-intensity exercise program has been specifically designed for individuals with post-stroke aphasia and includes an interval training full-body workout, which can increase cardiovascular fitness, improve muscle strength and motor performance, and maximize cognitive and language gains. The main question this study aims to answer is: • Does participation in a high-intensity exercise program lead to changes in physical health, language, cognitive, motor recovery, psychological and/or psychosocial domains? Participants will be randomly assigned to either a high-intensity exercise program (target intervention) or a low-intensity exercise program (control intervention) delivered over 12-weeks in a group setting. Outcome measures will be collected once immediately after the intervention period and once during the following 12-week maintenance period to capture short- and long-term effects of the exercise program.
Eligibility
Plain Language Summary
Simplified for easier understanding
This summary was AI-generated to explain the trial in plain language. It is not medical advice. Always discuss eligibility with your doctor before enrolling in a clinical trial.
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Interventions
We have developed a new exercise program specifically designed for individuals with post-stroke aphasia, Aphasia Physical EXercise (APEX), to provide a safe, stroke- and aphasia-friendly physical exercise intervention to achieve optimal physical fitness and cognitive/language gains. This intervention, based on published research and clinical practice recommendations, is a high-intensity interval training full-body workout optimized to accommodate the range of motor abilities and general deconditioning observed in stroke survivors.
As an active control intervention, a low-intensity non-aerobic exercise program was selected that mirrors more closely the standard-of-care physical therapy currently provided to stroke patients. This control intervention will offer the same level of participant involvement and type of interaction, but without the intensity element, i.e., it will not incorporate the cardiovascular and the strengthening components.
Locations(4)
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NCT07281313