Comparison of Training in Virtual Environment With and Without Physiotherapeutic Intervention in Chronic Stroke Patients

"Experimental group will perform a balance training program in a virtual environment (using a gaming system with balance board device - eight games of Nintendo Wii Fit®, for 14 sessions) without verbal/manual physiotherapeutic intervention.~Initially, instructions about the rules and strategies of how to play the game and control the avatar will be provided.~Then the patient will be invited to start the game, and in the two attempts of the training no manual or verbal assistance will be provided. Physiotherapist participation during training will be restricted to ensuring patient safety, providing motivational verbal stimuli, and replicating the feedback provided by the game at the end of each attempt."

Control group will perform a balance training program in a virtual environment (gaming system with balance board device - eight games of Nintendo Wii Fit®, for 14 sessions) with verbal and manual physiotherapeutic intervention. Initially, instructions about the rules and strategies of how to play the game and control the avatar will be provided. Then the patient will be invited to start the game, and in the first attempt of the training physiotherapist will provide manual and verbal assistance, providing corrections on movement (avoiding compensatory movements). In the second attempt, no manual or verbal assistance will be provided (only ensuring patient safety, providing motivational verbal stimuli), allowing the patient to organize his or her performance.