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[EN] Background: Posturography systems that incorporate force platforms are considered to assess balance and postural control with greater sensitivity and objectivity than conventional clinical tests. The Wii Balance Board (WBB) system has been shown to have similar performance characteristics as other force platforms, but with lower cost and size. Objectives: To determine the validity and reliability of a freely available WBB-based posturography system that combined the WBB with several traditional balance assessments, and to assess the performance of a cohort of stroke individuals with respect to healthy individuals. Methods: Healthy subjects and individuals with stroke were recruited. Both groups were assessed using the WBB-based posturography system. Individuals with stroke were also assessed using a laboratory grade posturography system and a battery of clinical tests to determine the concurrent validity of the system. A group of subjects were assessed twice with the WBB-based system to determine its reliability. Results: A total of 144 healthy individuals and 53 individuals with stroke participated in the study. Concurrent validity with another posturography system was moderate to high. Correlations with clinical scales were consistent with previous research. The reliability of the system was excellent in almost all measures. In addition, the system successfully characterized individuals with stroke with respect to the healthy population. Conclusions: The WBB-based posturography system exhibited excellent psychometric properties and sensitivity for identifying balance performance of individuals with stroke in comparison with healthy subjects, which supports feasibility of the system as a clinical tool. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[EN] Objectives: First, to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of a virtual reality (VR) based telerehabilitation program in the balance recovery of individuals with hemiparesis after stroke in comparison with an in-clinic program; second, to compare the subjective experiences; and third, to contrast the costs of both programs. Design: Single-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Setting: Neurorehabilitation unit. Participants: Chronic outpatients with stroke (N=30) with residual hemiparesis. Interventions: Twenty 45-minute training sessions with the telerehabilitation system, conducted 3 times a week, in the clinic or in the home. Main Outcome Measures: First, Berg Balance Scale for balance assessment. The Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment balance and gait sub-scales, and the Brunel Balance Assessment were secondary outcome measures. Clinical assessments were conducted at baseline, 8 weeks (posttreatment), and 12 weeks (follow-up). Second, the System Usability Scale and the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory for subjective experiences. Third, cost (in dollars). Results: Significant improvement in both groups (in-clinic group [control] and a home-based telerehabilitation group) from the initial to the final assessment in the Berg Balance Scale (eta(2)(p) = .68; P=.001), in the balance (eta(2)(p) = .24; P=.006) and gait (eta(2)(p) =.57, P=.001) subscales of the Tinetti Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment, and in the Brunel Balance Assessment (control: chi(2)=15.0; P=.002; experimental: chi(2)=21.9; P=.001). No significant differences were found between the groups in any balance scale or in the feedback questionnaires. With regard to subjective experiences, both groups considered the VR system similarly usable and motivating. The in-clinic intervention resulted in more expenses than did the telerehabilitation intervention ($654.72 per person). Conclusions: First, VR-based telerehabilitation interventions can promote the reacquisition of locomotor skills associa