The Effect of Rhythmic Visual Stimulation on Kinematics Parameters of Gait in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating inflammatory disease of the central nervous system that affects the gait ability, participation and quality of life of individuals. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of rhythmic visual stimulation on kinematics parameters of gait in patients with MS. 18 patients with MS (5 males and 13 females) with Expanded Disability Status Scale scores of 3 to 6 were selected by accessible and purposive sampling method. Patients were randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups. Training for the experimental group included gait with rhythmic visual stimulation and for the control group included gait without stimulation. Training was performed for three weeks, three times a week and each session 30 minutes. Before and after training, stride length, stride time, double support time, cadence and gait speed were measured by motion analysis device. data were analyzed using covariance analysis model and boot strap non parametric method in covariance analysis model. Findings showed gait training with rhythmic visual stimulation leads to improvments: 36% in stride length, 22% in stride time, 41% in double support time, 29% in cadence and 80% in gait speed in patients with MS, but there was no significant difference between the experimental and control groups in improvement of stride length, stride time, double support time, cadence and gait speed (P>0.05). Therefore, gait training with rhythmic visual stimulation supposed as a complementary rehabilitation method to improve gait function in patients with MS.