OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of cueing strategies on balance function and gait in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). METHODS: A total of 40 PD patients were randomly divided into control group (N = 20) and observation group (N = 20). The patients in control group received routine drug treatment and rehabilitation therapy according to the disease. The patients in observation group received rhythmic recurring cues and one-off cues on the basis of routine treatment. All patients were given rehabilitation therapy for 4 weeks (30 minutes, 5 times a week). Berg Balance Scale (BBS), 10-Meter Walk Test (10MWT), Timed Up and Go Test (TUGT) and Freezing of Gait Questionnaire (FOGQ) were used to evaluate balance function and gait of patients before and after 4-week training. 10MWT was used to calculate step length and velocity. RESULTS: After 4-week training, BBS score (p = 0.000), step length (p = 0.000) and velocity (p = 0.000) of 10MWT were significantly increased, while TUGT time (p = 0.000) and FOGQ score (p = 0.000) were significantly reduced in both groups. Compared with control group, step length (p = 0.048) and velocity (p = 0.025) of 10MWT were significantly increased, while TUGT time (p = 0.023) and FOGQ score (p = 0.034) had a significant decrease in observation group. CONCLUSIONS: Both routine rehabilitation therapy and cueing strategies can improve the balance function and gait of PD patients, but cueing strategies had better effect on gait than routine rehabilitation therapy.

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