WBV ON THE UPPER LIMB PERFORMANCE IN COMPLETE SPINAL CORD INJURY
Authors/Creators
- 1. PhD candidate, Department of Education, Physical Activity and Human Motor Control, Autonomous University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- 2. Dr. PhD, Department of Education, Physical Activity and Human Motor Control, Autonomous University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- 3. Dr. PhD, Department of Sciences, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
- 4. Physical Therapy Department, College of Health and Human Sciences, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC, USA
Description
Background: individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) need upper limbs during activities of daily living that include transferring and propelling a wheelchair. A single session of Whole-body Vibration (WBV) has shown positive impact on musculoskeletal performance. Objective: To investigate the effects of one single session of WBV over the upper limb function in complete SCI during the execution of functional tasks. Design: Individuals with SCI have performed three functional tasks: a timed push up test, grip strength and throw ball test before and after a session of WBV. Participants: 15 individuals with complete SCI were recruited for this study. Interventions: WBV was composed of one single session, five series of thirty seconds vibration with one-minute rest between. The push up test consisted of attempting a maximum number of repetitions during a fifteen second work period followed by a forty-five second rest period. Grip strength was assessed using a handheld dynamometer. Throw ball test consisted on launching a 2Kg medicine ball as afar as possible. Results: WBV statistically improved performance in all three functional tasks. Conclusions: one single session of WBV can improve upper limb performance in complete SCI.