Effects of a balance-based exergaming intervention using the Kinect sensor on posture stability in individuals with Parkinson's disease: A single-blinded randomized controlled trial

Background: the present study examined the effects of a balance-based exergaming intervention using the kinect sensor on postural stability and balance in people with parkinson's disease (pd). methods: we conducted a subject-blinded,randomized controlled study. twenty people with pd (hoehn and yahr stages i through iii) were recruited and randomly assigned to either a balance-based exergaming group (n = 10) or a balance training group (n = 10) for an 8-week balance training period. postural stability was assessed using the limits of stability (los) and one-leg stance (ols) tests. balance was assessed using the berg balance scale (bbs) and the timed up and go (tug) test. participants were assessed pre- and post-training. results: after training,participants in the balance-based exergaming group showed significant improvements in los performance,and in the eyes-closed condition of the ols test. both training programs led to improvements in bbs and tug performance. furthermore,balance-based exergaming training resulted in significantly better performance in directional control in the los test (78.9 ± 7.65 %) compared with conventional balance training (70.6 ± 9.37 %). conclusions: balance-based exergaming training resulted in a greater improvement in postural stability compared with conventional balance training. our results support the therapeutic use of exergaming aided by the kinect sensor in people with pd. trial registration: clinicaltrials.gov. nct02671396 © 2016 the author(s).