Does effect of rehabilitation based on sensory conflicts in patients with vestibular deficits exceed learning effect?

Abstract

Objective:

The purpose was to assess learning and rehabilitation effect and their influence on Sensory Organization Test results in young and elderly patients with peripheral, central and mixed vestibular pathology.

Material and methods:

26 patients with different vestibular system deficits participated in this study. Rehabilitation was held five days a week, for two weeks. To assess learning effect, SOT was administered to each patient twice and compared: 1) on the day preceding the beginning of rehabilitation (SOT1), and 2) on the first day of rehabilitation (SOT2). To evaluate rehabilitation effect, results of SOT2 were compared to SOT3 (administered on the last day of rehabilitation).

Results:

Learning effect showed similar improvement in CS in all groups but young. Rehabilitation caused further improvement in CS in all groups but central pathology. This improvement was similar between those groups. There was no significant difference found between learning and rehabilitation effect in CS.

Conclusions:

The results of our study indicate that none of the groups achieved significant benefit from rehabilitation based on sensory conflicts that would overcome the learning effect. However, the lack of significant advantage of rehabilitation over learning does not mean that it does not exist.