Electrical stimulation after stroke: balance findings were clearer than mobility findings
A review of randomized trials reported better balance and trunk control with electrical stimulation, while uncertainty remained about functional mobility.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The authors reported improvements in balance and trunk control after electrical stimulation in stroke rehabilitation. Benefits for functional mobility remained unclear because results varied across studies. These outcomes should be considered separately: an improvement on a balance test does not, by itself, establish better performance on a test of moving around.
The abstract provides no pooled effect sizes or confidence intervals for the main outcomes, making the size and precision of any benefit difficult to assess.
Different tests, different results
Within the functional electrical stimulation subgroup, effect sizes were larger for balance than for mobility or trunk control. The outcome being measured helped explain why results differed across studies.
Uncertain treatment details
Within that subgroup, stimulation intensity, frequency, and electrode location did not significantly explain differences in results. This does not show that the settings are interchangeable. Larger early improvements do not establish an optimal treatment schedule.
The original publication
Effect of different types of electrical stimulation on postural control and gait after stroke: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Elsayed A, Khalifa MM, Elsayed FT et al.
Physiol Int · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41324597
- Record checked
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