Exergaming with additional postural demands improves balance and gait in patients with multiple sclerosis as much as conventional balance training and leads to high adherence to home-based balance training

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of and adherence to an exergame balance training program with additional postural demands in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Design: Matched controlled trial, assessment of balance before and after different balance training programs, and adherence to home-based balance exercise in the 6 months after the training.

Setting: A neurorehabilitation facility and center for MS.

Participants: Patients with balance problems (N=70) matched into 1 of the training groups according to age as well as balance and gait performance in 4 tests. Nine patients dropped out of the study because of scheduling problems. The mean age of the 61 remaining participants was 47±9 years, and their Expanded Disability Status Scale score was 3±1.

Interventions: Three weeks of (1) conventional balance training (control), (2) exergame training (playing exergames on an unstable platform), or (3) single-task (ST) exercises on the unstable platform.

Main outcome measures: Test scores in balance tests and gait analyses under ST and dual-task (DT) situations. Furthermore, in the 6 months after the rehabilitation training, the frequency and type of balance training were assessed by using questionnaires.

Results: All 3 groups showed significantly improved balance and gait scores. Only the exergame training group showed significantly higher improvements in the DT condition of the gait test than in the ST condition. Adherence to home-based balance training differed significantly between groups (highest adherence in the exergame training group).

Conclusions: Playing exergames on an unstable surface seems to be an effective way to improve balance and gait in patients with MS, especially in DT situations. The integration of exergames seems to have a positive effect on adherence and is thus potentially beneficial for the long-term effectiveness of rehabilitation programs.