Spatial neglect (SN) is a common cognitive disorder after brain injury. Prism adaptation treatment (PAT) is one of the promising interventions for SN albeit inconsistent results from previous studies. We carried out a comparison intervention (PAT vs. Sham) and aimed to evaluate the efficacy of PAT on visuospatial symptoms of SN in an inpatient rehabilitation setting that offered a highly intensive comprehensive brain injury rehabilitation program. A total of 34 patients with moderate-to-severe SN secondary to stroke or traumatic brain injury were randomized to the PAT group and the Sham group (an active control group). Both groups received 10 sessions of treatment, over two weeks, in addition to the rehabilitation therapies provided by their rehabilitation care teams. Outcomes were measured using an ecological instrument (the Catherine Bergego Scale) and paper-and-pencil tests (the Bells Test, the Line Bisection Test and the Scene Copying Test). Patients were assessed at baseline, immediately after treatment, two weeks after treatment, and four weeks after treatment. 23 (67.6%) patients completed treatment and all the assessment sessions and were included in the final analyses using mixed linear modeling. While SN symptoms reduced in both groups, we found no difference between the two groups in the degree of improvement. In addition, the average SN recovery rates were 39.1% and 28.6% in the PAT and Sham groups, respectively, but this discrepancy did not reach statistical significance. Thus, the present study suggests that PAT may contribute little to SN care in the context of a highly intensive inpatient rehabilitation program. Further large-scale investigation is required to uncover the mechanisms underlying PAT and Sham in order to refine the treatment or create new interventions.

Background: The aim of the work is to verify the usability of a stabilometric platform and audiovisual feedback in the group-based therapy of patients with vertebral algic syndrome, to analyze an immediate effect after a single therapeutic unit, and to analyze differences between male and female probands. Methods: The study included 189 patients (90 male, age 55 ± 12 and 89 female, age 52 ± 12). All patients received group balance therapy with a portable medical device, Homebalance MA. The intervention consisted of measurement of quiet stance and a reference training scene before and after 15 min of game-like balance training with audiovisual feedback. Results: A statistically significantly lower value of the body sway trajectory during quiet stance was detected in men than in women. After a single therapy session, there was a statistically significant improvement in quiet stance with visual feedback, and marginal statistically significant improvement in the time required to complete the reference training scene. Conclusions: Homebalance MA is a utilizable tool for group therapy. The use of group game-like balance training increases the availability of physiotherapeutic intervention for a larger number of patients, while maintaining the positive effect of the therapy.

Spatial neglect (SN) impedes functional recovery after stroke, leading to reduced rehabilitation gains and slowed recovery. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether integrating prism adaptation treatment (PAT) into a highly intensive rehabilitation program eliminates the negative impact of spatial neglect on functional and motor recovery. We examined clinical data of the 355 consecutive first-time stroke patients admitted to a sub-acute inpatient neurorehabilitation program that integrated PAT. The 7-item Motor Functional Independence Measure, Berg Balance Scale, and Motor Activity Log were used as main outcome measures. We found that 84 patients (23.7%) had SN, as defined by a positive score on the Catherine Bergego Scale via the Kessler Foundation Neglect Assessment Process (KF-NAP®). Although 71 patients (85%) received PAT, the presence of SN at baseline, regardless of PAT completion, was associated with lower functional independence, higher risk of falls, and a lower functional level of the affected upper limb both at admission and at discharge. The severity of SN was associated with inferior rehabilitation outcomes. Nonetheless, patients with SN who received PAT had similar rehabilitation gains compared to patients without SN. Thus, the present study suggests that integrating PAT in an intensive rehabilitation program will result in improved responses to regular therapies in patients with SN.

Background: Fitness trackers could represent an easy-to-use and cheap tool for continuous tracking of physical activity of stroke survivors during the period of their recovery at home. The aim of the study was to examine the accuracy of the Fitbit activity tracker in locomotor activity monitoring of stroke survivors with respect to gait disorders, walking speed, walking aid, and placement of the tracker on body. Methods: Twenty-four ambulatory stroke survivors (15 men and 9 women) with locomotion/gait disorder were involved in the study. Patients underwent two walking tests with the Fitbit Alta HR trackers attached on 5 different places on body. The accuracy of the trackers has been analyzed on 3 groups of patients—those walking without any walking aid, those using a single-point stick and those using a rolling walker. Results: For no-aid patients, the most accurate place was the waist. Patients with a single-point stick revealed the smallest deviations for a tracker attached to a healthy lower limb, and patients with a rolling walker revealed the smallest deviations for a tracker attached on the paretic lower limb. Conclusion: An accuracy comparable with the healthy population can be reached for all of the three groups of patients, while fulfilling the conditions for minimum speed of 2 km/h and optimal placement of the trackers with respect to a walking aid and aspect to impairment.