Constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) is one of the most popular treatments for enhancing upper and lower extremity motor activities and participation in patients following a stroke. However, the effect of CIMT on balance is unclear and needs further clarification. The aim of this research was to estimate the effect of CIMT on balance and functional mobility in patients after stroke. After reviewing 161 studies from search engines including Google Scholar, EBSCO, PubMed, PEDro, Science Direct, Scopus, and Web of Science, we included eight randomized controlled trials (RCT) in this study. The methodological quality of the included RCTs was verified using PEDro scoring. This systematic review showed positive effects of CIMT on balance in three studies and similar effects in five studies when compared to the control interventions such as neuro developmental treatment, modified forced-use therapy and conventional physical therapy. Furthermore, a meta-analysis indicated a statistically significant effect size by a standardized mean difference of 0.51 (P = 0.01), showing that the groups who received CIMT had improved more than the control groups. However, the meta-analysis results for functional mobility were statistically insignificant, with an effect size of −4.18 (P = 0.16), indicating that the functional mobility improvements in the investigated groups were not greater than the control group. This study’s findings demonstrated the superior effects of CIMT on balance; however, the effect size analysis of functional mobility was statistically insignificant. These findings indicate that CIMT interventions can improve balance-related motor function better than neuro developmental treatment, modified forced-use therapy and conventional physical therapy in patients after a stroke.

Constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) has been delivered in the stroke population to improve lower-extremity functions. However, its efficacy on prime components of functional ambulation, such as gait speed, balance, and cardiovascular outcomes, is ambiguous. The present review aims to delineate the effect of various lower-extremity CIMT (LECIMT) protocols on gait speed, balance, and cardiovascular outcomes. Material and methods: The databases used to collect relevant articles were EBSCO, PubMed, PEDro, Science Direct, Scopus, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Web of Science. For this analysis, clinical trials involving stroke populations in different stages of recovery, >18 years old, and treated with LECIMT were considered. Only ten studies were included in this review, as they fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The effect of CIMT on gait speed and balance outcomes was accomplished using a random or fixed-effect model. CIMT, when compared to controlled interventions, showed superior or similar effects. The effect of LECIMT on gait speed and balance were non-significant, with mean differences (SMDs) of 0.13 and 4.94 and at 95% confidence intervals (Cis) of (−0.18–0.44) and (−2.48–12.37), respectively. In this meta-analysis, we observed that despite the fact that several trials claimed the efficacy of LECIMT in improving lower-extremity functions, gait speed and balance did not demonstrate a significant effect size favoring LECIMT. Therefore, CIMT treatment protocols should consider the patient’s functional requirements, cardinal principles of CIMT, and cardiorespiratory parameters.

Objective of this review was to collate information on the effectiveness of trunk targeted intervention on children with cerebral palsy (CP) on three functional outcomes that are gross motor function, trunk control and balance. A comprehensive search was conducted on online databases from inception to August 2021, using relevant keywords. A total of 15 randomized controlled trials which enrolled children with cerebral palsy under 18 years met the inclusion criteria. A significant improvement was seen in the trunk targeted training groups on applying trunk targeted interventions. Trunk targeted interventions improve gross motor function, trunk control as well as balance, hence should be incorporated in the conventional physical therapy program delivered to children with CP and would help in greater functional recovery.

Background. The foot posture index (FPI) is a valid, reliable, and multidimensional method for determining foot posture in a wide range of clinical settings. To date, no normative data of healthy young adults in Saudi Arabia have been available for comparison and reference. Hence, this study is aimed at establishing the FPI reference values, gender, and side differences of FPI and their association with anthropometric determinants, balance, functional mobility, and hypermobility. Methods. FPI was assessed in 581 (291 men and 290 women) healthy young adults aged 18–25 years. The FPI range was obtained for both feet as the sum of the scores (–2, –1, 0, 1, and 2) given to each criterion: (–1 to –12) supinated foot, (0 to +5) neutral foot, and (+6 to +12) pronated foot. The study furthermore assessed the balance using a near tandem balance test, functional mobility by stair ascent and descent test, and joint hypermobility via the Beighton scale. Results. The average FPI score was 2.76 ± 5.23 for all subjects, 2.98 ± 5.02 for men and 2.55 ± 5.43 for women. Neutral foot posture was most frequent in this study (52.9%). A higher proportion of women had pronated (21.0%) and supinated (11.7%) feet than men which were 16.8% and 10.3%, respectively. This study also confirmed that side differences were found to be significant (p value < 0.001), whereas gender differences were significant only in the normal, pronated, and supinated foot groups. Conclusion. The most common foot posture in both genders was ranged from neutral to slight pronation. We also found a correlation between balance with FPI in the supinated and hypersupinated foot groups, functional mobility with FPI of pronated and supinated foot groups, and joint hypermobility with FPI of the hyperpronated foot group.

Stroke is the prime cause of disability in the elderly population. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is an emerging noninvasive brain stimulation in rehabilitating upper limb function ...

High-Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HD-tDCS) is focal and improves higher mental functions. Due to the lack of published evidence, we conducted this review on the effect of HD-tDCS on cognitive functions in healthy and diseased individuals. We performed an electronic-data and gray-literature search to obtain the relevant studies for the review. The two distinct literature searches obtained a total of 468 studies. Out of these, a total of 12 studies were conducted on higher mental functions, and of these, two were on disordered consciousness, five were on memory, two were on speech, two were on cognition, and one was on execution. We submitted nine studies with control group to methodological quality assessment using the PEDro Scale. Remaining three studies underwent quality assessment by Quality Assessment Tool for Before-After (Pre-Post) Studies with No Control Group. We found that anodal HD-tDCS stimulation is significantly effective in treating disordered consciousness and improving memory, speech, cognition, and execution.