Study design (if review, criteria of inclusion for studies)
Randomized controlled trial
Participants
Children between 6 and 17years with CF presenting mild-to-moderate pulmonary impairment.
Interventions
Subjects were randomly allocated to control (CON); exercise (EX); or exercise and neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) (EX + NMES) groups. NMES was applied in the quadriceps and the interscapular region, simultaneously to the exercises. CON group followed the CF team recommendations.
Outcome measures
Subjects were evaluated at baseline and at the end of an 8-week individualized exercise-program (3 days/week, 60min/session). The main outcome measures were lung function, cardiorespiratory fitness, functional capacity, quality of life and muscle strength.
Main results
ted significant differences, indicating a better performance in both EX and EX + NMES. No significant changes between groups were seen for quality of life and lung function. As for muscle strength, EX and EX + NMES presented large effect sizes and significant differences, compared to CON, for quadriceps (p = 0.004, η(2)(p) = 0.401), pectoral (p = 0.001, η(2)(p) = 0.487), dorsal (p = 0.009, η(2)(p) = 0.333) and handgrip (p = 0.028, η(2)(p) = 0.278).
Authors' conclusions
A resistance exercise-training program led to improvements in muscle strength and functional capacity in CF patients with mild-to-moderate pulmonary impairment. The addition of NMES to the training program resulted in no extra favorable effects.