Home-based virtual reality balance training and conventional balance training in Parkinson's disease: A randomized controlled trial.
OBJECTIVE
Virtual reality has the advantage to provide rich sensory feedbacks for training balance function. This study tested if the home-based virtual reality balance training is more effective than the conventional home balance training in improving balance, walking, and quality of life in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).


METHODS
Twenty-three patients with idiopathic PD were recruited and underwent twelve 50-minute training sessions during the 6-week training period. The experimental group (n = 11) was trained with a custom-made virtual reality balance training system, and the control group (n = 12) was trained by a licensed physical therapist. Outcomes were measured at Week 0 (pretest), Week 6 (posttest), and Week 8 (follow-up). The primary outcome was the Berg Balance Scale. The secondary outcomes included the Dynamic Gait Index, timed Up-and-Go test, Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire, and the motor score of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale.


RESULTS
The experimental and control groups were comparable at pretest. After training, both groups performed better in the Berg Balance Scale, Dynamic Gait Index, timed Up-and-Go test, and Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire at posttest and follow-up than at pretest. However, no significant differences were found between these two groups at posttest and follow-up.


CONCLUSIONS
This study did not find any difference between the effects of the home-based virtual reality balance training and conventional home balance training. The two training options were equally effective in improving balance, walking, and quality of life among community-dwelling patients with PD.
School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Wen-Chieh
WC
Yang
School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Hsing-Kuo
HK
Wang
Department of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Ruey-Meei
RM
Wu
Department of Multimedia Design, National Formosa University, Huwei Township, Yunlin, Taiwan.
Chien-Shun
CS
Lo
School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Physical Therapy, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan. Electronic address: khlin@ntu.edu.tw.
Kwan-Hwa
KH
Lin
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D059825:Physical Therapists; D004856:Postural Balance; D011788:Quality of Life; D012648:Self Care; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan; D063367:Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy
Parkinson's disease; balance training; virtual reality