The effect of optokinetic and galvanic vestibular stimulations in reducing post-stroke postural asymmetry

Improving balance after stroke is of crucial importance because its improvement is strongly correlated to higher patient autonomy and improved quality of life (QoL). The characteristics of postural disturbances following stroke, as observed on a force platform, are of increased sway and a lateral displacement of the centre of pressure (CP) toward the non-paretic limb (Pérennou et al 1997, Rode et al 1998). The lateral displacement of the centre of pressure toward the lesion side is more important in patients with right hemispheric lesion (RHL) and this is thought to partly explain the predominance of postural imbalance in left hemiparetic patients.

Source: Clinical Neurophysiology - May 22, 2015 Category: Neuroscience Authors: I.V. Bonan, E. Leblong, S. Leplaideur, B. Laviolle, S. Tassel Tonche, A.P. Yelnik Source Type: research