title: Effect of Sling Exercise Training on Balance in Patients with Stroke: A Meta-Analysis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aims to evaluate the effect of sling exercise training (SET) on balance in patients with stroke.
  
  
  METHODS
  PubMed, Cochrane Library, Ovid LWW, CBM, CNKI, WanFang, and VIP databases were searched for randomized controlled trials of the effect of SET on balance in patients with stroke. The study design and participants were subjected to metrological analysis. Berg balance Scale (BBS), Barthel index score (BI), and Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) were used as independent parameters for evaluating balance function, activities of daily living(ADL) and motor function after stroke respectively, and were subjected to meta-analysis by RevMan5.3 software.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Nine studies with 460 participants were analyzed. Results of meta-analysis showed that the SET treatment combined with conventional rehabilitation was superior to conventional rehabilitation treatments, with increased degrees of BBS (WMD = 3.81, 95% CI [0.15, 7.48], P = 0.04), BI (WMD = 12.98, 95% CI [8.39, 17.56], P < 0.00001), and FMA (SMD = 0.76, 95% CI [0.41, 1.11], P < 0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Based on limited evidence from 9 trials, the SET treatment combined with conventional rehabilitation was superior to conventional rehabilitation treatments, with increased degrees of BBS, BI and FMA, So the SET treatment can improvement of balance function after stroke, but the interpretation of our findings is required to be made with caution due to limitations in included trials such as small sample sizes and the risk of bias. Therefore, more multi-center and large-sampled randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm its clinical applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Lianghua
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Junqi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Qiyuan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Jingjie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Yucong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D006801:Humans; D009043:Motor Activity; D004856:Postural Balance; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation