Effects Of Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation On Balance And Walking Function In Stroke Patients

Objective Balance and walking dysfunction may increase the risk of falls by 4 to 5 times and 2 to 3 times in stroke patients.In order to reduce the occurrence of falls in stroke patients and improve the quality of life of patients,this study combined rhythmic auditory stimulation with routine exercise training to exercise for stroke patients,aiming to explore:(1)Whether rhythmic auditory stimulation combined with routine exercise training could improve balance and walking function of stroke patients more than routine exercise training;(2)Whether the two training protocol in this study could improve the balance and walking function of stroke patients.Method This study is a randomized,single-blind,controlled trial.In this study,26 convalescent stroke patients were selected and randomly assigned to RAS group or Control group.RAS group was trained rhythmic auditory stimulation combined with routine exercise training,while Control group was trained routine exercise training.The two groups maintained the same training intensity and training period,40 minutes per session,once a day,five days a week,for four weeks.Before and after training,balance and walking function of stroke patients were evaluated by sensory organization test,motor control test and weight symmetry test in Neuro Com tests,10-meter walking test,time-up go test in clinical test,Berg balance scale and unbalanced coordination test in balance and coordination assessment.Two-way Repeated Measures ANOVA(group*time)was used for data processing and statistical analysis,and significance level α was defined as 0.05.Result 1.Results of Neuro Com(1)Results of Sensory Organization Test After training,the equilibrium score of the six test scenarios in both groups improved significantly compared with that before training(P<0.05),while there was no significant statistical difference in the comprehensive score of the two groups after training.After 4 weeks of training,the balance score of the RAS group in scenario 2 was significantly better than that of the Control group(P=0.031).The visual and vestibular sensory weight scores of the two groups were significantly improved after training compared with before training(P<0.01),while the preference sensory weight scores were not significantly improved after training.The sensory weight scores of somatosensory in RAS group was significantly improved after training compared with before training(P=0.001),but not in Control group.After training,the sensory weight scores of somatosensory in RAS group was significantly better than that in control group(P=0.013).(2)Results of Motor Control Test When the platform moved forward and slightly,the reaction time of affected side in RAS group was significantly improved after training compared with that before training(P<0.001),but no significant improvement after training in Control group.After 4 weeks of training,the reaction time of RAS group was significantly lower than that of Control group(P=0.038).When the platform moved backward and slightly,the reaction time of affected side in RAS group and Control group improved significantly after training compared with before training(P<0.001),but there was no significant difference between the two groups in the reaction time of affected side after training.(3)Results of Weight Symmetry Test In both groups,the difference of weight bearing percentage of lower limbs after training was significantly improved when the knee flexion was 0° and 30°(P<0.01).After 4 weeks of training,the percentage difference of weight bearing between lower limbs in RAS group was significantly lower than that in Control group when the knee flexion was 0°(P=0.025).2.Results of Clinical Test The cadence,walking speed and TUGT improved significantly in both groups after training compared with before training(P<0.001).After 4 weeks of training,the cadence of RAS group was significantly better than that of Control group(P=0.012).3.Results of Balanced and Coordinated Assessment BBS scores and UCT scores in both groups improved significantly after training compared with before training(P<0.01).After training,the UCT score of RAS group was significantly better than that of Control group(P=0.002).Conclusion In this study,it was found that rhythmic auditory stimulation combined with routine exercise training was more effective in improving balance and walking function in stroke patients than routine exercise training,and both training protocol in this study could improve balance and walking function in stroke patients.As a safe and effective auxiliary training method,rhythmic auditory stimulation could be used in routine exercise training for patients with stroke,improve the efficacy of routine exercise training,promote the recovery of balance and walking function in patients with stroke.