The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study

Purpose: Impaired balance leads to loss of function, e.g., the inability to walk safely. Therefore, restoring balance is a common goal of rehabilitation after a stroke. An innovative motor imaging and robotic device, the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro walking table, was used to improve balance in...

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Main Authors: Anna Olczak, Raquel Carvalho, Adam Stępień, Józef Mróz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Brain Sciences
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/3/275
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author Anna Olczak
Raquel Carvalho
Adam Stępień
Józef Mróz
author_facet Anna Olczak
Raquel Carvalho
Adam Stępień
Józef Mróz
author_sort Anna Olczak
collection DOAJ
description Purpose: Impaired balance leads to loss of function, e.g., the inability to walk safely. Therefore, restoring balance is a common goal of rehabilitation after a stroke. An innovative motor imaging and robotic device, the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro walking table, was used to improve balance in patients who had suffered an acute stroke. Materials and Methods: Sixty-six stroke patients in the acute phase with an average age of 64.85 ± 18.62 years were randomly assigned to one of three groups (22 subjects each) and treated with different therapies (conventional, conventional with Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro, and conventional with Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro enriched with motor imaging). The duration of therapy was two weeks. Patients were assessed before and after completion of therapy. The study used the trunk stability test and the Berg Balance Scale to assess balance, and the Riablo™ device to measure static balance. In addition, an assessment of the superficial tension of the transversus abdominis and multifidus muscles was performed. The clinical trial registration URL unique identifier was NCT06276075. Results: In each of the groups studied, the therapies applied resulted in significant improvement in functional assessment of trunk stability and balance (TCT < 0.001 and BBS < 0.001). The assessment of balance in the frontal (<i>p</i> = 0.023) and sagittal (<i>p</i> = 0.074) planes with the Riablo™ device confirmed the superiority of motor imaging-enhanced therapy at the level of a statistical trend. The tension of the transversus abdominis was higher at the second measurement (M = 14.41; SE = 3.31). Conclusions: Motor imagery-enhanced therapy is most important, both for trunk stability and functional improvement of body balance parameters and for increasing transversus abdominis muscle tension.
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spelling doaj-art-58fa18f43e1249558e0b054233faad362025-08-20T03:43:21ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252025-03-0115327510.3390/brainsci15030275The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational StudyAnna Olczak0Raquel Carvalho1Adam Stępień2Józef Mróz3Faculty of Rehabilitation, Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw, 00-968 Warsaw, PolandRISE-Health—Escola Superior de Tecnologias da Saúde do Tâmega e Sousa (ESTeSTS) Instituto Politécnico de Saúde do Norte, Avenida Central de Gandra, 1317, 4585-116 Paredes, PortugalNeurological Clinic, Military Institute of Medicine-National Research Institute, 128 Szaserów Street, 04-141 Warsaw, PolandRehabilitation Clinic, Military Institute of Medicine-National Research Institute, 128 Szaserów Street, 04-141 Warsaw, PolandPurpose: Impaired balance leads to loss of function, e.g., the inability to walk safely. Therefore, restoring balance is a common goal of rehabilitation after a stroke. An innovative motor imaging and robotic device, the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro walking table, was used to improve balance in patients who had suffered an acute stroke. Materials and Methods: Sixty-six stroke patients in the acute phase with an average age of 64.85 ± 18.62 years were randomly assigned to one of three groups (22 subjects each) and treated with different therapies (conventional, conventional with Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro, and conventional with Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro enriched with motor imaging). The duration of therapy was two weeks. Patients were assessed before and after completion of therapy. The study used the trunk stability test and the Berg Balance Scale to assess balance, and the Riablo™ device to measure static balance. In addition, an assessment of the superficial tension of the transversus abdominis and multifidus muscles was performed. The clinical trial registration URL unique identifier was NCT06276075. Results: In each of the groups studied, the therapies applied resulted in significant improvement in functional assessment of trunk stability and balance (TCT < 0.001 and BBS < 0.001). The assessment of balance in the frontal (<i>p</i> = 0.023) and sagittal (<i>p</i> = 0.074) planes with the Riablo™ device confirmed the superiority of motor imaging-enhanced therapy at the level of a statistical trend. The tension of the transversus abdominis was higher at the second measurement (M = 14.41; SE = 3.31). Conclusions: Motor imagery-enhanced therapy is most important, both for trunk stability and functional improvement of body balance parameters and for increasing transversus abdominis muscle tension.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/3/275strokemotor imagingErigo<sup>®</sup>Pro tilt tablebalancephysiotherapy
spellingShingle Anna Olczak
Raquel Carvalho
Adam Stępień
Józef Mróz
The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
Brain Sciences
stroke
motor imaging
Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro tilt table
balance
physiotherapy
title The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
title_full The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
title_fullStr The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
title_full_unstemmed The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
title_short The Influence of Therapy Enriched with the Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro Table and Motor Imagery on the Body Balance of Patients After Stroke—A Randomized Observational Study
title_sort influence of therapy enriched with the erigo sup r sup pro table and motor imagery on the body balance of patients after stroke a randomized observational study
topic stroke
motor imaging
Erigo<sup>®</sup>Pro tilt table
balance
physiotherapy
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/3/275
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