Systematic review finds VR and physiotherapy equally effective for Parkinson's balance

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Frontiers in Medicine Published May 25, 2026 Medically reviewed May 25, 2026 DOI ↗ By Dr. Ji-eun Park, MD · Brain, Mind & Pain

Key Takeaway

Consider VR as an equally effective alternative to conventional physiotherapy for short-term balance improvement in Parkinson's disease.

This is a systematic review and meta-analysis of virtual reality interventions for patients with Parkinson's disease. The review synthesized evidence from 214 participants, comprising 105 controls and 109 in the VR intervention group. The primary outcome was the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) over a 3.5-month follow-up period.

The main finding was no significant difference in absolute change on the BBS between the groups. The control group had a change of 1.64 ± 1.84 points, and the VR group had a change of 2.85 ± 1.74 points, with a p-value of 0.269. The authors concluded that VR-based interventions are as effective as conventional physiotherapy for improving balance in the short term.

The review did not report on safety outcomes, including adverse events, serious adverse events, discontinuations, or tolerability. The authors did not note specific limitations in the provided data. The practice relevance suggests VR interventions may deliver efficient and tailor-made balance training alongside conventional physiotherapy.

The certainty of the evidence is not reported, and the findings should be interpreted with caution given the limited sample size and short follow-up duration.

Study Details

Study typeMeta analysis

EvidenceLevel 1

PublishedMay 2026

View Original Abstract ↓

Background and objectivesThe use of virtual reality (VR) as a therapeutic modality to improve balance in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) is promising due to its interactive simulations. However, the advantage of VR over conventional balance training has yet to be established. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluates and summarizes randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing VR interventions to conventional physiotherapy.Materials and methodsA comprehensive search of the PubMed, EBSCOHost, and SciELO databases was performed. Article selection and filtering were performed using Rayyan software.ResultsThe search yielded 185 research articles, of which 162 remained after removing duplicates. Screening the titles and abstracts for the use of VR and reviewing the full-texts for the RCT design yielded 17 articles, six of which used the Berg Balance Scale (BBS). The data from these remaining six trials were included in this systematic review. Data extraction resulted in 214 participants (105 controls and 109 in the VR intervention). The average age of the participants was 61.43 ± 13.3 years, with 74 (34.6%) women and a mean PD duration of 7.11 ± 1.91 years. The average number of sessions was 25 (10–60), with an average follow-up period of 3.5 months. At follow-up, the control group improved by an average of 1.64 ± 1.84 points on the BBS, whereas the VR group improved by an average of 2.85 ± 1.74 points. There was no significant difference (p = 0.269) between the groups for the absolute change on the BBS.ConclusionsVR-based interventions for patients with PD are as effective as conventional physiotherapy for improving balance in short-term follow-ups. VR-based interventions alongside conventional physiotherapy may deliver efficient and tailor-made balance training.