Improvements in spatiotemporal outcomes, but not in recruitment of automatic postural responses, are correlated with improved step quality following perturbation-based balance training in chronic stroke.

Introduction: People with stroke often exhibit balance impairments, even in the chronic phase. Perturbation-based balance training (PBT) is a therapy that has yielded promising results in healthy elderly and several patient populations. Here, we present a threefold approach showing changes in people with chronic stroke after PBT on the level of recruitment of automatic postural responses (APR), step parameters and step quality.

Perturbation-Based Balance Training to Improve Step Quality in the Chronic Phase After Stroke: A Proof-of-Concept Study.

People with stroke often have impaired stepping responses following balance perturbations, which increases their risk of falling. Computer-controlled movable platforms are promising tools for delivering perturbation-based balance training under safe and standardized circumstances. This proof-of-concept study aimed to identify whether a 5-week perturbation-based balance training program on a movable platform improves reactive step quality in people with chronic stroke.

Determining specificity of motor imagery training for upper limb improvement in chronic stroke patients: a training protocol and pilot results.

Motor imagery (MI) refers to the mental rehearsal of a movement without actual motor output. MI training has positive effects on upper limb recovery after stroke.However, until now it is unclear whether this effect is specific to the trained task or a more general motors kill improvement.