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An exploration of the effects of weighted garments on balance and gait of stroke patients with residual disability

B Evans

M Falconer

D Jones

E Hill

G Giakas

The Stroke Association's Therapy Research Unit, Division of Geriatric Medicine, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK

Objective: To explore the effects of weighted garments on the balance and gait of stroke patients.

Design: A pilot randomized controlled study with blinded measurement.

Setting: Weighted garments were worn by patients living in the community and measurement was made in a hospital-based gait laboratory.

Subjects: Twenty-four adults who were at least six months post stroke and were able to walk 10 metres with or without assistance or a walking aid.

Intervention: The six-week treatment-phase subjects were given a set of weighted garments which they were shown how to apply and instructed to wear on their paretic side. Subjects randomly allocated to the six-week control phase were not given any weighted garments.

Main outcome measures: Balance was measured with the Berg Balance Scale. Gait was measured using GaitMat II, an instrumented walkway. Gait parameters of interest were velocity and symmetry of: step length; single support time; double support time; and support base width. Measures were made at baseline before randomization (baseline) and at the end of the six weeks of intervention (outcome).

Results: No statistically significant differences were found between the treatment and control groups at outcome for balance (Mann–Whitney U-test; p = 0.74), gait velocity (p = 0.68) or symmetry of gait parameters (p = 0.33 to p = 0.75).

Conclusions: We found no evidence to support the clinical use of these weighted garments for stroke survivors.

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