Cardiovascular

Independent association of SOT-composite with berg balance scale scores in Chinese stroke patients: a retrospective cross-sectional study.

Zheng W, Shen W, et al. • Frontiers in neurology • 2026

PubMed 42922845 DOI 10.3389/fneur.2026.1918753
TL;DR

SOT-Composite score was independently associated with Berg Balance Scale performance in stroke patients, even after adjustment for multiple covariates.

Key Findings

Results

Each 1-point higher SOT-Composite score was independently associated with a 0.2745-point higher Berg Balance Scale score after full adjustment.

  • Sensitivity model (adjusted for age, gender, diagnosis, disease duration, Brunnstrom lower-extremity stage, and weight symmetry index): β = 0.2745, 95% CI 0.171-0.386, p < 0.001.
  • Retrospective cross-sectional analysis of 339 stroke patients treated at Guangdong 999 Brain Hospital between January 2021 and December 2023.
  • SOT-Composite (0-100) was measured with NeuroCom Smart EquiTest and BBS (0-56) was assessed, both within 48 h.
Results

The association between SOT-Composite and BBS was also significant in the Core model with fewer covariates.

  • Core model (adjusted for age, gender, diagnosis, and disease duration): β = 0.2471, 95% CI 0.137-0.357, p < 0.001.
  • The estimate was similar in magnitude to the Sensitivity model (0.2745), indicating that adding Brunnstrom stage and weight symmetry index did not eliminate the association.
Results

Brunnstrom lower-extremity stage had the strongest standardized association with BBS, followed by SOT-Composite score.

  • In the Sensitivity model, Brunnstrom lower-extremity stage had standardized β = 0.4562, p < 0.001.
  • SOT-Composite score had standardized β = 0.2527, p < 0.001.
Results

Visual, somatosensory, and vestibular processing ratios were each significantly associated with balance performance on the BBS.

  • Unstandardized β = 0.18 BBS points per unit ratio change for visual processing.
  • Unstandardized β = 0.16 for somatosensory processing.
  • Unstandardized β = 0.15 for vestibular processing.
Methods

Tertile stratification of SOT-Composite scores was performed descriptively to explore dose-response patterns.

  • The stratification was descriptive, not a primary inferential analysis.
  • Its purpose was to explore dose-response patterns between sensory integration capacity and BBS.
Background

Stroke-related balance dysfunction is common, but the quantitative relationship between sensory integration capacity and functional balance has been inadequately characterized.

  • Balance dysfunction affects 61-83% of stroke patients.
  • The study aimed to quantify the association between SOT-Composite and BBS in Chinese stroke patients.
Conclusions

Whether targeted sensory training can improve balance outcomes remains untested and requires prospective intervention studies.

  • The design is cross-sectional and retrospective, so it shows association rather than causation.
  • The authors call for future prospective intervention studies.

What This Means

This study looked at records from 339 stroke patients in a hospital in China to see whether how well a person's brain combines sensory information (vision, touch/body position sense, and the inner ear) relates to how well they perform on a standard clinical balance test. Sensory integration was measured with a computerized platform test (the Sensory Organization Test composite score), and balance was measured with the Berg Balance Scale. Patients with higher sensory integration scores tended to have better balance scores. Each 1-point higher sensory score was linked to about 0.27 points higher on the 56-point balance scale, even after accounting for age, sex, type of stroke, time since stroke, leg motor recovery stage, and weight distribution symmetry. Leg motor recovery stage showed the strongest link to balance, with sensory integration next. Visual, body-position (somatosensory), and vestibular (inner ear) processing each showed significant links to balance. Because this was a retrospective snapshot at one time point, it cannot show that improving sensory processing causes better balance. This research suggests sensory integration may be a useful marker related to balance after stroke, and the authors note that future prospective studies are needed to test whether targeted sensory training improves balance.

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Citation

Zheng W, Shen W, Li M, Ma G, Xie M, Leng Q, et al.. (2026). Independent association of SOT-composite with berg balance scale scores in Chinese stroke patients: a retrospective cross-sectional study.. Frontiers in neurology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2026.1918753