Does the Addition of Visual Feedback Improve Postural Vertical Training in the Patients with Pusher Syndrome After Stroke?

PURPOSE: To compare postural vertical training with and without visual feedback for improving functional recovery in post-stroke hemiparesis patients with pusher syndrome. METHODS: This study used a single-subject research with alternating design with multiple baselines. Three patients with hemiparetic post-stroke diagnosed with pusher syndrome were selected from the inpatients at the department of physical therapy of a local rehabilitation hospital. For subjective postural vertical (SPV) training with and without visual feedback, an alternating treatment was used. The subjects were randomly selected using the sequence of the two training methods upon starting the intervention, and then the training was alternated. SPV training was performed twice a day, once in the morning and again in the afternoon. Scale for contraversive pushing (SCP), postural assessment scale for stroke, and Barthel index score were used to determine the intervention-related changes. RESULTS: Compared to the average score at baseline, the average SCP score for the SPV training without visual feedback decreased from 5.3 to 2.8, from 4.6 to 3, and from 3.5 to 2.7 for subjects 1, 2, and 3, respectively. However, the average score for the SPV training with visual feedback decreased from 5.3 to 3.1, from 4.6 to 3.5, and from 3.5 to 3.3 for subjects 1, 2, and 3, respectively. CONCLUSION: Postural vertical training without visual feedback may be more beneficial than postural vertical training with visual feedback for improving pushing behavior and functional activity in stroke patients with pusher syndrome.