Balance-training review finds clearer gains on a movement test than other outcomes
Different training approaches improved Timed Up and Go performance, but results for static balance and walking speed remained inconclusive. Rankings did not establish clinical benefit.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Sensorimotor and neurofunctional training had the strongest reported results on the Timed Up and Go test. Vibration and balance training also showed statistically significant improvements on that measure. Evidence for static balance and walking speed was inconclusive, and these test results do not establish that any approach prevented falls.
This abstract-based account cannot identify the reference comparison behind the reported effect sizes or the intervention durations. It reports balance-test outcomes rather than fall counts, limiting conclusions about actual fall prevention.
Balance was measured in different ways
The analysis considered sensorimotor, whole-body vibration, neurofunctional and balance training. Its outcomes included Timed Up and Go, a walking test and the Berg Balance Scale. A favorable result on one measure did not extend consistently across the others.
Rankings need supporting effects
Some approaches ranked favorably even where the underlying effects were small and statistically uncertain. The authors caution that ranking probabilities describe relative positions in the analysis, rather than establishing the size or clinical importance of a benefit.
The original publication
Effects of different neuromuscular training modalities on balance performance in older adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.
Zhong Y, Chen P, Guo W et al.
Front Physiol · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40861893
- Record checked
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