Objective: Balance dysfunctions in stroke survivors have significant impact on their functional independence. This study was designed to assess the balance performance of hemiparetic stroke survivors and to determine the effect of gender, type of stroke and laterality on balance performance.

Materials and Methods: The research was a cross-sectional study of 120 community-dwelling adults who had survived six months or more after a stroke. Balance performance was assessed using the Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale and the Functional Reach Test (FRT).

Results: Eighty seven (72.5%) males and thirty three (27.5%) females with ages ranging from 31 to 83 years (mean 55.7±10.4) participated in this study. Sixty three (52.5%) had hemorrhagic stroke, while 57 (47.5%) had ischemic stroke. Seventy one (59.2%) had right-sided hemiparesis, while 49 (40.8%) had left-sided hemiparesis. Significant differences were found between balance performance (balance confidence and functional reach distance) of male and female stroke survivors with male stroke survivors having higher values; and between those of hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke survivors, with ischemic stroke survivors having higher values. In a multiple regression analysis, patients’ characteristics (age, height, weight, body mass index, post stroke duration) were related to the balance performance, accounting for 5.1% and 7.4% of the variance in the ABC Scale scores and functional reach distance, respectively.

Conclusion: This study concluded that gender and stroke type had influence on balance performance of hemiparetic stroke survivors and should be considered as factors in balance assessment and retraining of hemiparetic stroke survivors.