stroke , with a high prevalence and long - term disabilities , is a major health problem in the 
 world1 , 2 , and it was reported that about two million people suffer from 
 stroke each year3 . impairments including 
 loss of strength , sensation , and coordination abilities , which result in walking 
 difficulties , balance disorders , and limb function disturbance , occur in 7080% of stroke 
 patients4 . this affects the life quality 
 of patients adversely and leads to a heavy economic burden on society . subsequently , 
 effective rehabilitation interventions to optimize recovery in stroke patients have received 
 high attention . in the treatment of balance and gait dysfunction , exercise therapy is regarded as one of 
 the commonly used methods that bring greater benefits in physical function for stroke 
 patients5 . the effect of exercises on 
 balance and gait dysfunction in stroke patients has been confirmed by many clinical 
 studies3 , 6 , 
 7 . in addition , core stability exercises 
 have been widely carried out in many fields , including medical rehabilitation , sports 
 training , and medical care . core stability exercises were shown to improve dynamic standing 
 balance , functional autonomy , static balance , flexibility , and stability8 . in recent years , core stability exercises have been reported to improve the rehabilitation 
 effect in stroke patients . in a study of 20 stroke patients , the control group underwent 
 standard exercise therapy , while the experiment group underwent both the core 
 stability - enhancing exercise and standard exercise therapy simultaneously . after 4 weeks , yu 
 found that the mean trunk impairment scale score and muscle activity of the lower trunk 
 increased in the experiment group significantly9 . in study by cabanas - valdes , 80 patients were randomly assigned to 
 an experimental group and a control group , both groups underwent conventional therapy 
 including exercises , and the experimental group performed core stability exercises . the 
 results showed that core stability exercises improve the efficacy of conventional 
 exercises10 . although these studies 
 confirmed the effect of core stability exercises in the rehabilitation of stroke patients , 
 few comparative studies have been carried out to compare the effect of core stability 
 exercises and conventional exercises . which is better in improving the stability and balance 
 of stroke patients , core stability or conventional exercises ? therefore , a prospective study including 40 participants was carried out in the department 
 of neurology of yidu central hospital of weifang between january 2014 and february 2015 . the 
 objective of the study was to determine which is better in the rehabilitation of stroke 
 patients , core stability exercises or conventional exercises . participants with stroke - induced hemiplegia were recruited from the department of neurology 
 of yidu central hospital of weifang between january 2014 and february 2015 . the diagnosis 
 and lesion side of these participants were confirmed by history evaluation , physical 
 examination , brain imaging , and examination of their medical records . the inclusion 
 criteria9 were ability to walk more than 
 32 feet , duration of disorder > 6 months , no musculoskeletal problems , absence of any 
 cardiac disorders , complete understanding of this research , and ability to communicate . the 
 included participants were randomly divided into either an experimental or control group by 
 a random computer - generated sequence . the randomization was managed by a physician who was 
 not involved in the study . all the included patients 
 signed an informed consent form , and the study was approved by the ethics committee of our 
 hospital . the patients in the control group performed conventional exercises including limb 
 stretching , passive mobilization of joints , walking between parallel bars , and occupational 
 therapy11 . the patients in the 
 experiment group performed core stability exercises including the plank , side plank , bridge , 
 straight leg raise , and modified push - up12 . before the beginning of the study , the patients were given 
 individual instruction by the researchers . during the exercises , physicians provide 
 necessary assistance to help the patients in executing the exercises . the exercises in both 
 groups were performed for one hour per day , six times a week for six weeks . the modified barthel index ( mbi)13 and 
 berg balance scale ( bbs)13 were used to 
 assess the clinical outcomes of the two groups . the mbi , which demonstrates the ability of 
 patients to deal with daily activities , consists of ten items including personal hygiene , 
 taking a bath alone , eating , using the bathroom , ascending stairs , dressing , defecating , 
 controlling urine , walking or using a wheelchair , and moving to a chair or bed . each item is 
 rated on a scale of 5 ranging from independent conduct to impossible to conduct . the bbs , 
 which can evaluate static and dynamic balance abilities of patients , consists of 14 items 
 covering functional tasks in three domains , sitting , standing , and changing posture , that 
 are scored on a scale of 04 . ibm spss statistics 21.0 ( ibm corp . , armonk , ny , usa ) was used for statistical analysis , 
 and p < 0.05 was considered significant . the differences in the baseline data including 
 age , gender , and disease course were compared using the t test or  test . in the current study , 40 patients with stroke - induced hemiplegia were included and divided 
 randomly into experimental and control groups , with 20 participants in each group at the 
 beginning of the study . the baseline clinical data including age , gender , disease course , 
 bbs , and mbi were recorded . there was no significant difference in baseline data between the 
 two groups ( p>0.05 ) . the patients in the control group performed conventional exercises 
 for six weeks and those in the experimental group carried out core stability exercises for 
 six weeks . three patients in the experimental group and two in the control group withdrew from the 
 study two weeks after treatment , and in total thirty - five patients completed the training . the final results showed that , compared with the baseline , the mean mbi scores of the 
 experimental and control groups increased significantly from 53.5 and 55.1 to 66.8 and 61.2 
 ( p<0.05 ) , respectively , and that the mean bbs scores increased significantly from 30.2 
 and 31.9 to 38.6 and 35.7 ( p<0.05 ) , respectively . in addition , mbi scores were 
 significantly lower ( p<0.05 ) in the control group than in the experimental group . the bbs 
 scores in the control group were relatively lower than those in the experimental group , but 
 there was no significant difference between the two groups ( p>0.05 ) . a prospective study was carried out to compare the effect of core stability exercises and 
 conventional exercises on patients with stroke - induced hemiplegia . to the best of our 
 knowledge the core , described as a box in the trunk with the 
 abdominals , paraspinals , and gluteals ; diaphragm and pelvic floor ; and hip girdle 
 musculature serving as the front wall , back wall , roof , and bottom , respectively , makes up 
 the largest part of the body and plays an important role in stabilizing the body and 
 controlling movement of daily activities9 . core stability is regarded as a prerequisite for maintaining proper posture of the lumbar 
 and pelvic regions during sports activities9 . as a result , core stability exercises have many advantages in the 
 field of rehabilitation and can improve the activation and cooperative contractions of 
 abdominal and multifidus muscles , facilitating the function and movement of the limbs9 , 12 . in the current study , the mbi and bbs scores after treatment were significantly increased 
 in both the experimental and control groups when compared with those before treatment . this 
 indicates that both core stability exercises and conventional exercises can improve the 
 abilities of patients to deal with daily activities and control body balance , which confirms 
 the viewpoints of many published studies9 , 10 . in addition , after treatment , the mbi scores were significantly lower in the control group 
 than those in the experimental group , and the bbs scores in the control group were also 
 lower than those in the experimental group . the outcomes demonstrate that compared with 
 conventional exercises , core stability exercises can result in better effectiveness in 
 patients with stroke - induced hemiplegia . however , in terms of comparison of the bbs scores 
 at the end of treatment , although the mean bbs score in the experimental group was larger 
 than that in the control group , there was no significant difference between the two groups . such a condition may be attributed to the relatively small sample size , and in a 
 larger - scale study , the difference between the two groups may be significant . consequently , 
 the outcomes in the present study can demonstrate that core stability exercises present with 
 better effectiveness than conventional exercises . first , the sample size was small , and a large - scale 
 clinical study may be better in a comparative study . second , the exercises results were 
 evaluated using self - reported measures of function instead of an objective measurement , and 
 this may have had some adverse influence on the final outcomes . third , there was a lack of 
 long - term follow - up in the study , and it is unclear whether the effectiveness of core 
 stability exercises will decrease in patients with hemiplegia with time .
[ purpose ] the aim of this study was to determine which is better in the rehabilitation of 
 stroke patients , core stability exercises or conventional exercises . [ subjects and 
 methods ] forty participants with hemiplegia were recruited in the department of neurology 
 of yidu central hospital of weifang between january 2014 and february 2015 and randomly 
 divided into either an experimental or control group . 
 the patients in the control group 
 performed conventional exercises for six weeks , and those in the experiment group 
 performed core stability exercises for six weeks . 
 the outcomes were evaluated using 
 modified barthel index and berg balance scale . 
 [ results ] after treatment , the modified 
 barthel index and berg balance scale were significantly increased in both groups when 
 compared with the baseline . 
 the modified barthel index was significantly lower in the 
 control group compared with the experimental group . 
 the berg balance scale scores in the 
 control group were relatively lower than those in the experimental group , but there was no 
 significant difference between the two groups . 
 [ conclusion ] core stability exercises have 
 a better effect on patients with hemiplegia than conventional exercises .