The effects of stair walking training on the balance ability of chronic stroke patients

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of stair walking training on balance ability of chronic stroke patients. [Subjects and Methods] Forty stroke patients were allocated equally and randomly to an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group undertook 30 minutes of training therapy and 30 minutes of walking exercise on stairs with flat surfaces. The control group undertook 30 minutes went of training therapy and 30 minutes of walking exercise on a flat surface. All the participants had five training sessions each week for four weeks. A Biorescue system was used to measure the weight-bearing footprint, anterior length in the limit of stability, posterior length in the limit of stability, surface area ellipse of Romberg, and length of Romberg before and after the training. [Results] With regard to changes in the weight-bearing footprint, the anterior length in the limit of stability, and the posterior length in the limit of stability, there were significant differences on both the paretic and nonparetic sides, and there were also significant differences in the surface area ellipse of Romberg and length of Romberg after the intervention. [Conclusion] The experiment results showed that walking exercise on stairs is effective in enhancing balance performance. The same exercise can be applied to patients with other types of neurological disorders to improve their balance.