Does Training on Swiss Ball Improve Trunk Performance after Stroke?- A Single Blinded, Quasi Experimental Study Design

Back Ground

Trunk performance is important for functional outcome and also an predicator for activities of daily living after stroke. Swiss ball training is superior to ground based exercise in their ability to recruit trunk muscles by increasing their demand and trunk balance on healthy individuals and athletes. However retrievable literature evidences for Swiss ball training on trunk performance is not available in stroke population.

Objective

To evaluate trunk performance on Swiss ball training after stroke.

Design

An assessor blinded,quasi-experimental study design.

Setting

Physiotherapy Department of Kasturba Medical College and hospital,Mangalore,Manipal University.

Participants

Twelve subjects having first ever unilateral stroke who can able to sit on a stable surface independently for one minute were recruited.

Intervention

In addition to conventional physiotherapy all the study subjects received 10 hours of individual and supervised trunk exercises on Swiss ball ;45 minutes with adequate rest periods 10-15 minutes, 6 times a week, for 3 weeks.

Outcome Measurement

Trunk performance was evaluated by Trunk Impairment Scale (TIS) by Verheyden.

Results

Post intervention the study group has shown a improvement in TIS score. A significant improvement was seen in dynamic balance and coordination subscales and also in total score (p value <0.05) of TIS.

Conclusion

Training on Swiss ball improve trunk performance after stroke.