Article

A recent study investigated the effects of galvanic vestibular
stimulation (GVS) on pusher behavior (PB) in post-stroke patients. However, there
have been no reports about the effects of multisession GVS on PB. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility and effects of
multisession GVS combined with physical therapy for PB in stroke patients.
METHODS: Two stroke patients who showed PB were enrolled. The ABAB single-case
design was used. Each phase lasted 1 wk. In phases A1 and A2, the patients
underwent a 60-min-long physical therapy session 5 days a week. In phases B1 and
B2, they underwent GVS for 20 min before each physical therapy session, and then
the same physical therapy program as in phases A1 and A2 were performed. PB was
evaluated using the Scale for Contraversive Pushing (SCP) and the Burke
Lateropulsion Scale (BLS). Outcomes were tested at the baseline and after each
phase. RESULTS: In both patients, the SCP scores were reduced only during phase
B2. Although the BLS scores improved at the A1 phase, a larger improvement was
seen at the two B phases. CONCLUSIONS: Multisession GVS combined with physical
therapy may have positive effects on PB in clinical setting.

Langue : ANGLAIS