SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Neurol.
Sec. Neurorehabilitation
Effects of task-oriented circuit class training on walking ability after stroke: A meta-analysis
Lin Chen
Xiuli Wei
Shenshen Zheng
Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan, China
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Abstract
Objective: Task-oriented circuit class training (CCT) is increasingly used in the rehabilitation of post-stroke gait dysfunction; however, current research findings remain inconsistent. This study aimed to further investigate its therapeutic efficacy. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating task-oriented CCT in stroke patients were identified through a systematic search of PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and EMBASE, covering the period from database inception to February 25, 2025. Studies were included if they assessed lower limb functional outcomes. Only publications in English were considered. Two independent reviewers conducted literature screening, data extraction, and risk-of-bias assessment. Meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.4 and Stata 18.0 software. Results: Twelve RCTs comprising 652 patients were included. Meta-analysis demonstrated significant, homogeneous effect sizes in favor of task-oriented CCT for the 6-minute walk test (mean difference (MD)= 57.88, 95% CI 33.43 to 82.32, P<0.00001), the Timed Up-and-Go test (MD = -1.74, 95% CI: -2.92 to -0.57, P=0.004), and gait speed (MD=0.13, 95% CI: 0.06 to 0.20, P=0.0002). Subgroup analysis indicated that in patients within 3 months post-stroke, implementing task-oriented CCT with increased training frequency (≥3 times/week) was associated with improvements in 6-minute walk distance and gait speed. In patients more than 3 months post-stroke, higher training frequency (≥3 times/week) or longer session duration (≥1 hour) was linked to greater gains in 6-minute walk distance and Timed Up-and-Go test (TUG) performance. Conclusions: These findings support the beneficial effects of task-oriented CCT in improving walking ability after stroke. Future large-scale, multicenter RCTs are warranted to compare the effects of varying training components, including content, intensity, single-session duration, and intervention timing, on post-stroke walking function.
Summary
Keywords
circuit class training电路训练, meta-analysis荟萃分析, Rehabilitation康复, stroke中风, walking ability行走能力
Received
14 October 2025
Accepted
11 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Chen, Wei and Zheng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Xiuli Wei
Disclaimer
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