title: Short-term effects of whole-body vibration on postural control in unilateral chronic stroke patients: preliminary evidence.
abstract: The short-term effects of whole-body vibration as a novel method of somatosensory stimulation on postural control were investigated in 23 chronic stroke patients. While standing on a commercial platform, patients received 30-Hz oscillations at 3 mm of amplitude in the frontal plane. Balance was assessed four times at 45-min intervals with a dual-plate force platform, while quietly standing with the eyes opened and closed and while performing a voluntary weight-shifting task with visual feedback of center-of-pressure movements. Between the second and third assessments, four repetitions of 45-sec whole-body vibrations were given. The results indicated a stable baseline performance from the first to the second assessment for all tasks. After the whole-body vibration, the third assessment demonstrated a reduction in the root mean square (RMS) center-of-pressure velocity in the anteroposterior direction when standing with the eyes closed (P < 0.01), which persisted during the fourth assessment. Furthermore, patients showed an increase in their weight-shifting speed at the third balance assessment (P < 0.05) while their precision remained constant. No adverse effects of whole-body vibration were observed. It is concluded that whole-body vibration may be a promising candidate to improve proprioceptive control of posture in stroke patients.
authors.affiliation: Sint Maartenskliniek Research, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ilse J W
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: van Nes
authors.forename: Alexander C H
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Geurts
authors.forename: Henk T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Hendricks
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Duysens
mesh_terms: D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D004856:Postural Balance; D020127:Recovery of Function; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014732:Vibration / Q000627:therapeutic use*