• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.187-193
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• 2019

Objective: The aim of this preliminary study was to investigate the effects of virtual reality combined with balance training on upper limb function, balance, and activities of daily living (ADL) in persons with acute stroke. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Methods: Fourteen acute stroke survivors were recruited and randomly assigned into two groups: the experimental group (n=7) and the control group (n=7). Both groups performed the conventional rehabilitation therapy for 30 minutes a day, 5 times a week, for 4 weeks. Additionally, the experimental group conducted the virtual reality training for 30 minutes on an unstable surface during each session, whereas the control group performed balance training for 30 minutes on a stable surface. All measurements were performed before and one day after intervention. Upper limb function, balance, and ADL were assessed using the Manual Function Test (MFT), the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and the Korean version of the Modified Barthel Index (K-MBI), respectively. Results: Both groups showed significant improvements in MFT, BBS, K-MBI after intervention (p<0.05). There were no significant differences between the experimental and control groups with respect to MFT, BBS, and K-MBI after intervention. The experimental group showed a greater decrease in fall risk (BBS<45) after intervention than the control group (p<0.05). Conclusions: These findings suggest that virtual reality combined with balance training has a better effect on balance improvement than virtual reality training alone in persons with acute stroke.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.125-133
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• 2014

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of patellar taping on balance and gait abilities in chronic stroke patients. Design: Randomized placebo-controlled trial. Methods: Thirty chronic stroke patients who have been diagnosed at least six months or before were recruited from R hospital. These study subjects were randomized to the experimental group (n=15) or placebo group (n=15). In the experimental group, patellar taping was applied while for the placebo group, placebo taping was applied. The Balance System SD was used for measuring dynamic standing balance in these two groups. In addition, the GAITRite (CIR System Inc.) system was utilized for calculating gait performance in these patients. Results: After application of taping, the patellar taping group showed a significant decrease in dynamic standing balance in their sway area (p<0.05). However, in the placebo group, there was no significant difference in dynamic standing balance ability and gait ability before and after application of taping. Comparison of the patellar taping group and placebo group showed significant differences in dynamic standing balance ability and gait performance (p<0.05). Conclusions: From the results of this study, it appears that application of patellar taping in chronic stroke patients significantly improved dynamic standing balance ability and gait ability in these patients. Based on these results, patellar taping is thought to be useful in real clinical settings where there are many chronic patients who are in need of improvement in their balance and gait ability.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.172-178
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• 2018

Objective: The purpose of this study was to show the temporary effects of performing jumping lunges on a sand surface on static balance and dynamic balance. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Methods: Twenty healthy subjects volunteered in the study and was randomly assigned into either the sand group (n=10) or the control group (n=10). The subjects in the sand group performed jumping lunges on a sand surface and the subjects in the control group performed jumping lunges on a firm surface. The intervention was performed for 3 sets of 8 repetitions by both groups. To measure static balance, the force plate was employed to measure the center of pressure (CoP) area, and the CoP velocity during one-legged standing. Anterior, postero-medial, postero-lateral movements was assessed using the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) to measure dynamic balance. Results: After the intervention, the sand group showed statistically significant improvements on all variables (CoP area, CoP velocity) in static balance (p<0.05). There were statistically significant changes in CoP area and CoP velocities between the two groups (p<0.05). In the sand group, there were significant improvements in the postero-medial and postero-lateral directions (p<0.05) except for anterior direction on dynamic balance. In the control group, there was a significant improvement in the postero-lateral and anterior directions (p<0.05). In comparison of the two groups, there was no statistically significant improvement in all variables. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that performing jumping lunges on a sand surface was effective in improving static and dynamic balance temporarily.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.590-600
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• 2007

We performed experimental studies on the muscle activities in the lower limbs for the different movement patterns on an unstable platform. A training system for postural control using an unstable platform that we previously developed was applied for the experiments. This unstable platform provides 360 degrees of movement allowing for training of posture in various directions and provides simultaneous excitations to visual sensory, somatic sensation and vestibular organs. Compare with the stable platform, keeping body balance on the unstable platform requests more effective sensation from vision, vestibular sense and somatic sense. Especially, the somatosensory inputs from the muscle proprioceptors and muscle force are crucial. To study the muscle activities for the different movement patterns and find the best training method for improving the ability of postural control through training and improving the lower extremity muscular strength, fifteen young healthy participants went through trainings and experiments. The participants were instructed to move the center of pressure following the appointed movement pattern while standing on the unstable platform. The electromyographies of the muscles in the lower limbs were recorded and analyzed in the time and the frequency domain. Our experimental results showed the significant differences in muscle activities for the different movement patterns. Especially, the spectral energy of electromyography signals in muscle for the movement pattern in anterior-posterior direction was significantly higher than those occurred in the other patterns. The muscles in the lower leg, especially tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius were more activated compared to the others for controlling the balance of body on the unstable platform. The experimental results suggest that, through the choice of different movement pattern, the training for lower extremity strength could be performed on specific muscles in different intensity. And, the ability of postural control could be improved by the training for lower extremity strength.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.146-151
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• 2017

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects rhythmic and non-rhythmic aerobic exercises on depression and balance of healthy elderly people. Design: Randomized controled trial. Methods: Nineteen older subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups for rhythmic and non-rhythmic aerobic exercises. Both aerobic exercises consisted of functional movements such as turning in opposite directions, and running in place, the exercise consisted of movements that could activate balance. The rhythmic training group initially used music with 8 beats, and then later progressed to 16 beats. Additionally, we adjusted the pace of the music using songs from 125 beats per minute (bpm) to 160 bpm. Both groups were exercised for 50 minutes a day, twice a week, for a total of 8 weeks. We measured the condition of the patients before the intervention, and after 8 weeks of intervention. The Beck depression inventory (BDI) was used to measure the degree of depression. The Berg balance scale (BBS) was used to measure static and dynamic balance ability. We measured the subject's subjective balance confidence using the fall efficacy scale (FES). Results: Both groups showed significant improvement in BDI, BBS, and FES (p<0.05). The rhythmic aerobic exercise group showed a significant improvement only in the BBS change values compared to the non-rhythmic group (p<0.05). Conclusions: According to this study, both rhythmic and non-rhythmic aerobic exercises resulted in significant improvement in the degree of depression and balance ability of the elderly. The rhythmic aerobic exercise was more effective for dynamic balance ability.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.11-17
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• 2016

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to determine whether high frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can improve balance ability in acute stage stroke patients. METHODS: The study was conducted on 30 subjects diagnosed with hemiparesis caused by stroke. The experimental group consisted of 15 patients that underwent rTMS for 15 mins and the control group consisted of 15 patients that underwent sham rTMS (for 15 minutes). A 70-mm figure 8 coil and a Magstim Rapid stimulator was used in both groups. Patients in the experimental group received 10 Hz rTMS applied to the hotspot in the lesioned hemisphere in 10-second trains with 50-second intervals between trains, for 15 minutes (total 2,000 pulses). Both groups received conventional physical therapy for 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week, for 4 weeks. Static balance ability analysis was performed using the Gaitview system to measure pressure rate, postural sway, and total pressure, and dynamic balance ability analysis was performed to measure pressure variables using a balance system. RESULTS: A significant difference was observed in post-training gains for pressure rate, total pressure in static balance, and overall stability index in dynamic balance between the experimental group and the control group (p<.05). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that high frequency rTMS may be beneficial for improving static and dynamic balance recovery in acute stroke patients.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.129-136
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• 2020

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the most effective feedback condition for static balance in elderly subjects. METHODS: Thirty-eight elderly subjects (12 men and 26 women with a mean age of 77.21 years) participated in this study. They each completed a questionnaire on their general characteristics, excluding personal identification codes. The static balance ability of the participants was evaluated using a Wii Balance Board and the Balancia program (version 2.0). The following three feedback conditions were considered: condition 1 (tactile feedback), condition 2 (visual feedback), and condition 3 (no feedback). One-way repeated-measures analysis of variance was used for the comparisons according to sway length and sway velocity. The statistical significance level was set to α = .05 for all variables. RESULTS: Significant differences in the sway length and sway velocity were observed between the three conditions (p < .05). Significant differences in the sway length were noted in the order of conditions 1, 2, and 3 (p < .05), and significant differences in the sway velocity in the order of conditions 3, 2, and 1 (p < .05). CONCLUSION: Significant differences in static balance ability were observed between the three conditions. In this study, tactile feedback was found to be the most effective feedback for balance training. Owing to aging and impairment of the senses, such as that observed in the tactile receptors, visual receptors, and proprioceptors, it is recommended that elderly subjects participate in balance training.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.62-71
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• 2023

Objective: Stroke patients need the training to adjust their posture and maintain balance is necessary to restore movement function, and unstable support training is one of the appropriate training. In this study, a systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to find out the effects of unstable surface training on balance and gait in stroke patients. Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis Methods: After creating a search expression referring to MeSH and EMTREE, the literature from 1976 to February 2022 was searched in the databases of PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library CENTRAL. A total of 331 studies were searched from three databases, and 11 studies were finally selected according to the inclusion criteria. Unstable surface training included studies using balance trainer, Whole-body vibration, and sand surfaces. Results: The results were found to be d=2.28 (p=0.02) and the effect size was 0.36 (95% CI: 0.05, 0.67) on the Berg Balance Scale. In the Kinesthetic Ability Trainer static balance, d=2.59 (p=0.01) and the effect size was 1.01 (95% CI: 0.24, 1.78). Timed Up and Go test showed that d=2.18 (p=0.03) and the effect size was 0.38 (95% CI: 0.04, 0.72). At the gait speed, d=0.99 (p=0.32) and the effect size was 0.15 (95% CI: -0.15, 0.45). In the 6-minute walk test, d=0.14 (p=0.89) and the effect size was 0.04 (95% CI: -0.47, 0.55). Conclusions: In this study was found that training was effective in balance if it became unstable in standing posture. Therefore, unstable surface training can be used to improve the balance of stroke patients in clinical practice.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.488-492
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• 2022

Objective: The purpose of this study is to find out the reliability and validity of the newly updated Balancia 2.5 program using Wii balance board through equipment that can measure center of pressure data with the precision. Design: Cross-sectional study Methods: Twenty-seven healthy adults participated in the study. The subjects were assessed for static balance ability by Accusway, and were assessed for static balance ability on Wii balance board connected to theBalancia 2.5 program.To limit postural fluctuations due to stare, the subjects were asked to look at a 15 cm dot drawn 3 m in front of them for 30 seconds with their eyes open. Static balance ability data such as path length and sway velocity were extracted from all measurement tools.Intra-rater and inter-rater reliability and validity were extracted through intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: The intra-rater reliability that the same rater shows consistent results through test-retest was a high level at ICC=0.968 (0.926~0.986), and inter-rater reliability that the requires consistent results even when measured by different raters was a high level at ICC=0.943 (0.870~0.975). The validity was a high level at ICC=0.948 (0.881~0.977), which shows whether the measurement tool is properly measuring what it is intended to measure. Conclusions: The Balancia 2.5 program, newly updated through this study, proved to be a program with high reliability and validity in evaluating static balance ability like the existingBalancia 2.0 program.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.213-220
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• 2016

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an 8-week ProBody massage program on body alignment and plantar pressure balance in middle-aged men with musculoskeletal diseases. Method: The subjects of this study were 20 middle-aged men with musculoskeletal diseases in B Metropolitan City who participated in an 8-week ProBody massage program conducted twice a week. Physical characteristics (height, weight, and body mass index), body alignment, and plantar pressure were assessed before and after the experiment. Results: The 20 middle-aged men with musculoskeletal diseases who underwent the ProBody massage program showed positive changes in physiological characteristics, body alignment, and plantar pressure balance. Conclusion: Consequently, the 8-week ProBody massage program was suggested to be effective for improving and preventing postural imbalance in middle-aged men with musculoskeletal diseases. The ProBody massage program could also be utilized to improve the body alignment and plantar pressure balance in middle-aged women with musculoskeletal diseases.