Complementary Health Practice Review

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Register here to gain access to SAGE's 500+ Journals Online

Click here to sign up for SAGE Journal Email Alerts today!

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Free Full Text (Free PDF) Free
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Batson, G.
Right arrow Articles by Deutsch, J. E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
Complementary Health Practice Review, Vol. 10, No. 3, 203-210 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/1533210105285516

Effects of Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement on Balance in Adults With Chronic Neurological Deficits Following Stroke: A Preliminary Study

Glenna Batson, PT, MA

Program in Physical Therapy, Winston-Salem State University, 601 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27110; batsong{at}wssu.edu,glenna@mindspring.com

Judith E. Deutsch, PhD, PT

University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey; Virtual Environments and Rehabilitation Sciences (RIVERS) lab in the Program in Physical Therapy.

The Feldenkrais Method is a complementary approach to motor learning that purports to induce change in chronic motor behaviors. This preliminary study describes the effects of a Feldenkrais program on balance and quality of life in individuals with chronic neurological deficits following stroke. Two male (48 and 53 years old) and 2 female participants (61 and 62 years old), 1 to 2.5 years poststroke, participated as a group in a 6-week Feldenkrais program. Pretest and posttest evaluations of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI), and the Stroke Impact Scale (SIS) were administered. Data were analyzed using aWilcoxon signed-rank test. DGI and BBS scores improved an average of 55.2% (p=.033) and 11% (p=.034), respectively. SIS percentage recovery improved 35%. Findings suggest that gains in functional mobility are possible for individuals with chronic stroke using Feldenkrais movement therapy in a group setting.

Key Words: Feldenkrais • balance • stroke • complementary medicine


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 ptjournalHome page
J. Stephens, J. Davidson, J. DeRosa, M. Kriz, and N. Saltzman
Lengthening the Hamstring Muscles Without Stretching Using "Awareness Through Movement"
Physical Therapy, December 1, 2006; 86(12): 1641 - 1650.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]