Abstract

Background: Patients with ataxia tend to have most issues with balance as people disturb the path of cerebellar or sensorial communication. Conventional treatment procedures primarily involve individual activities and cannot entirely deal with everyday functioning problems. To evaluate and compare the effects of Dual Task Training (DTT) and Task-Oriented Circuit Training (TOCT), both incorporated with Conventional Therapy (CT) on improving balance and quality of life in ataxic patients, the study was carry out a crossover clinical trial. Objective: To evaluate the comparative effectiveness of dual task training and task-oriented circuit training combined with conventional therapy for enhancing balance in patients with ataxia. Methods: Fifty-eight subjects with ataxia were randomly selected and divided into two groups. Group A was given DTT conjoined with CT, whereas Group B was given TOCT with CT. Both groups had three sessions per week for 12 weeks. The Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia (SARA), and EQ-5D-5L to measure quality of life were used at baseline, week 6, and week 12. Results: Both groups experienced significant improvements in balance and quality of life throughout the 12-week intervention. Nevertheless, the group undergoing Task-Oriented Circuit Training along with Conventional Therapy showed significantly superior gains in balance measures and EQ-5D-5L index scores compared to the group receiving Dual Task Training with Conventional Therapy at the 12-week. Overall, the Task-Oriented Circuit Training group demonstrated greater enhancements in both balance and quality of life. Conclusion: Task-Oriented Circuit Training along with Conventional Therapy improved balance and quality of life more than Dual Task Training. These findings justify using task-based circuit training in rehabilitation to achieve better functional results. Future studies should target larger samples and further follow-ups.

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