title: Efficacy of a vibrotactile neurofeedback training in stance and gait conditions for the treatment of balance deficits:  a double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vestibular rehabilitation strategies mostly require a long-lasting training in stance conditions, which is finally not always successful. The individualized training in everyday-life conditions with an intuitive tactile neurofeedback stimulus seems to be a more promising approach. Hence, the present study was aimed at investigating the efficacy of a new vibrotactile neurofeedback system for vestibular rehabilitation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Double-blinded trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred five patients who experience one of the following balance disorders for more than 12 months were included in the study: canal paresis, otolith disorder, removal of an acoustic neuroma, microvascular compression syndrome, Parkinson's disease, and presbyvertigo.
  
  
  METHODS
  Vibrotactile neurofeedback training was performed daily (15 min) over 2 weeks with the Vertiguard system in those 6 tasks of the Standard Balance Deficit Test with the most prominent deviations from the normative values.
  
  
  METHODS
  Trunk and ankle sway, dizziness handicap inventory, and vestibular symptom score were measured in the verum and placebo group before the training, on the last training day and 3 months later.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A significant reduction in trunk and ankle sway as well as in the subjective symptom scores were observed in the verum group. Such an effect could not be found in any of the outcome parameters of the placebo group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The vibrotactile neurofeedback training applied in the present study is a highly efficient method for the reduction of body sway in different balance disorders. Because the rehabilitation program is easy to perform, not exhausting, and time saving, elderly patients and those with serious, long-lasting balance problems also can participate successfully.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology at UKB, Hospital of University of Berlin, Charité Medical School, Berlin, Germany. dietmar.basta@ukb.de
authors.forename: Dietmar
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Basta
authors.forename: Marcos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rossi-Izquierdo
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soto-Varela
authors.forename: Mario Edwin
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Greters
authors.forename: Roseli Saraiva
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Bittar
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Steinhagen-Thiessen
authors.forename: Rahel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Eckardt
authors.forename: Tatsuhiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Harada
authors.forename: Fumiyuki
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.forename: Kaoru
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogawa
authors.forename: Arne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ernst
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004244:Dizziness / Q000534:rehabilitation; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058765:Neurofeedback / Q000379:methods*; D004856:Postural Balance; D014110:Touch; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D015837:Vestibular Diseases / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D014732:Vibration