Comparing the effects of Swiss-ball training and virtual reality training on balance, mobility, and cortical activation in individuals with chronic stroke: study protocol for a multi-center randomized controlled trial

Comparing the effects of Swiss-ball training and virtual reality training on balance, mobility, and cortical activation in individuals with chronic stroke: study protocol for a multi-center randomized controlled trial | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Comparing the effects of Swiss-ball training and virtual reality training on balance, mobility, and cortical activation in individuals with chronic stroke: study protocol for a multi-center randomized controlled trial Alisha Noreen, Jiani Lu, Xuan Xu, Huihui Jiang, Yuanyuan Hua, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4170766/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 Oct, 2024 Read the published version in Trials → Version 1 posted 5 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background: Balance and mobility deficits are major concerns in stroke rehabilitation. virtual reality (VR) training and Swiss-ball training are commonly used approaches to improve balance and mobility. However, no study has compared the efficacy of VR training and Swiss-ball training in improving balance and mobility function or investigated cortical activation and connectivity in individuals with stroke. Methods: A prospective, single-blinded, parallel-armed, multi-center randomized controlled trial with 4 weeks of training will be conducted. Seventy-six participants aged 30–80 years with stroke will be recruited.Participants will be allocated to one of four groups: A) the VR + Swiss-ball training + conventional physical therapy group; B) the Swiss-ball training + conventional physical therapy group; C) the VR training + conventional physical therapy group; or D) the conventional physical therapy group. All participants will receive 50 min of training per day, 5 times per week, for a total of 4 weeks. The primary outcomes will be balance and mobility measures. Secondary outcomes will include the 10-minute walk test,dynamic gait index and cortical activation. Outcomes will be measured on three occasions: at baseline, after the training, and at the 4-week follow-up. Discussion : This trial will provide evidence to determinewhether there are differences in clinical outcomes and cortical activation following two different types of exercise programs and/or their combination and to elucidate the recovery mechanisms of balance and mobility function in individuals with stroke. Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry reference: www.chictr.org.cn (No. ChiCTR2400082135) Stroke balance mobility cortical activation study protocol clinical trial RCT Full Text Supplementary Files SupplementaryTablesandFiguresv4.docx SwissballandVRSPIRITchecklist.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 Oct, 2024 Read the published version in Trials → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Major revision 30 Jun, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 May, 2024 Reviewers invited by journal 16 May, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 09 May, 2024 First submitted to journal 12 Apr, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4170766","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":303066811,"identity":"8d82863c-bbeb-4984-950d-37f5b3dd715e","order_by":0,"name":"Alisha Noreen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Kunming Medical University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Alisha","middleName":"","lastName":"Noreen","suffix":""},{"id":303066812,"identity":"d054b00c-6b33-4f9d-8af0-c05268f0ab98","order_by":1,"name":"Jiani Lu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Yangzhi Affiliated Rehabilitation Hospital of Tongji University: 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