In previous studies, treatments for alleviating edema included intermittent compression , upper limb elevation , wrist orthosis , continuous passive motion , and the use of kinesio tape , but their effects were limited. It therefore became apparent that novel, more effective interventions for post-stroke hand edema were required. Recently, Ishii et al.  reported that the deoxy-hemoglobin of non-exercising upper limb muscles in 13 healthy men decreased during contralateral one-armed cranking exercise. The direction of changes in deoxy-hemoglobin is determined by changes in the venous blood volume . Hence, Ishii et al.’s results suggested that venous return might be promoted in the affected hand by contralateral hand exercise.