Orthopods recognise value of FES Cycling

Review articles are always excellent ways of keeping in touch medical techniques and their apparent effectiveness. 

A new article in the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery entitled "WhatÙs New in Orthopaedic Rehabilitation" by Harish Hosalkar, MD, MBMS(Orth), FCPS(Orth), DNB(Orth), Jason Hsu, MD, Nirav K. Pandya, MD, and Mary Ann Keenan, MD - see J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2008;90:2301-11.

includes a section on management of spinal cord injury.  The authors report on the work of Griffin et al. who investigated functional electrical stimulation cycling and its effect on the metabolic, body composition, and neurologic profile of patients with paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury.

Eighteen patients with a spinal cord injury were enrolled in the study.

After thirty minutes of functional electrical stimulation cycling three times per week for ten weeks, a comprehensive profile, including body composition and bone mass, motor and sensory American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) scores, plasma glucose and insulin levels, and serum inflammatory marker levels, was compiled.

Lean muscle mass increased, but there was no change in bone or adipose tissue at ten weeks. Lower extremity motor, sensory, and total ASIA scores were significantly higher after functional electrical stimulation. Glucose levels were significantly lower at thirty, sixty, and ninety minutes after dextrose consumption following functional electrical stimulation cycling, and insulin levels were significantly lower.

Although plasma lipid levels did not change, except for a slight increase in high-density lipoprotein levels, selected inflammatory markers were all significantly reduced after ten weeks.

Significant improvements in motor and sensory ability, along with improvements in blood glucose control and lean muscle mass, are indicative of the health benefits of functional
electrical stimulation cycling in patients with spinal cord injury. 

Griffin L, Decker MJ, Hwang JY, Wang B, Kitchen K, Ding Z, Ivy JL. Functional
electrical stimulation cycling improves body composition, metabolic and neural
factors in persons with spinal cord injury. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2008 Apr 25
[Epub ahead of print].