Citation

Gialanella B, Comini L, Prometti P, Vanoglio F, Santoro R. Life (Basel) 2023; 13(4).

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publications Institute)

DOI

10.3390/life13041059

PMID

37109588

PMCID

PMC10144929

Abstract

To date, little is known about the effects of motor rehabilitation in peripheral neuropathy (PN) patients with a history of recurrent falls (RFH). This study aimed to assess balance and the activities of daily living (ADLs) in elderly lower limb PN patients with and without RFH and to verify the effects of motor rehabilitation on balance and ADLs in these patients. We collected data from 64 lower limb PN patients, who underwent a conventional motor rehabilitation program: 35 patients had a history of recurrent falls, and 29 did not. The Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and motor FIM, before and after rehabilitation, were the outcome measures. After rehabilitation, lower limb PN patients with RFH had significantly higher scores in BBS and motor FIM (p < 0.001, for both) than at entry. The final BBS score and effectiveness in the BBS score of lower limb PN patients with RFH were lower than those of patients without RFH (p < 0.05 and p = 0.009, respectively). The study shows that conventional motor rehabilitation improves both balance and ADLs in patients, but balance improvement is lower in those with RFH. Thus, motor rehabilitation can be a therapeutic option for the management of these patients.

Language: en

Keywords

balance; rehabilitation; diabetes; ADLs; effectiveness; lower limb polyneuropathy; recurrent falls