Effects of multi-directional step exercise with weight-shifting as an adjunct to conventional exercises on balance and gait in stroke patients

Stroke patients have gait dysfunctions that affect their activities of daily living. Stroke patients should be able to take multi-directional steps as it is necessary to achieve an independent gait. The study aimed to examine the effects of multi-directional step exercises (MSE) along with weight-shifting as an adjunct to conventional therapeutic exercises (CTE) on functional gait performance and balance in patients with stroke. Twenty-four stroke patients (mean age 56.75 years) participated in the study and were divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group (EG) included MSE along with weight shifting and CTE. The control group (CG) included only CTE. Treatment intervention lasted for 4 weeks. Gait and balance were measured using the functional gait assessment (FGA) and the berg balance scale (BBS), respectively. EG showed a significant improvement (p = 0.000) in both the BBS and FGA scores. In CG, a significant improvement (p = 0.000) was observed only in FGA scores. EG showed a greater improvement in scores of BBS (p = 0.000) and FGA (p = 0.000) than CG. Four weeks of MSE in conjunction with CTE were more effective in improving balance and functional gait performance compared to CTE alone in the selected stroke population.