title: Effects of aerobic exercise training on fitness and walking-related outcomes in ambulatory individuals with chronic incomplete spinal cord injury.
abstract: METHODS
  Single group, pretest-post-test study.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the effects of a non-task-specific, voluntary, progressive aerobic exercise training (AET) intervention on fitness and walking-related outcomes in ambulatory adults with chronic motor-incomplete SCI.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rehabilitation research center.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten ambulatory individuals (50% female; 57.94±9.33 years old; 11.11±9.66 years postinjury) completed voluntary, progressive moderate-to-vigorous intensity AET on a recumbent stepper 3 days per week for 6 weeks. The primary outcome measures were aerobic capacity (VO2peak (volume of oxygen that the body can use during physical exertion)) and self-selected overground walking speed (OGWS). Secondary outcome measures included walking economy, 6-minute walk test (6MWT), daily step counts, Walking Index for Spinal Cord Injury (WISCI-II), Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) and Berg Balance Scale (BBS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Nine participants completed all testing and training. Significant improvements in aerobic capacity (P=0.011), OGWS (P=0.023), the percentage of VO2peak used while walking at self-selected speed (P=0.03) and daily step counts (P=0.025) resulted following training.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results indicate that total-body, voluntary, progressive AET is safe, feasible, and effective for improving aerobic capacity, walking speed, and select walking-related outcomes in an exclusively ambulatory SCI sample. This study suggests the potential for non-task-specific aerobic exercise to improve walking following incomplete SCI and builds a foundation for further investigation aimed at the development of exercise based rehabilitation strategies to target functionally limiting impairments in ambulatory individuals with chronic SCI.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences and Research, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: N D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: DiPiro
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences and Research, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.|Division of Physical Therapy, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.|Ralph H Johnson VAMC, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Embry
authors.affiliation: Department of Exercise Science, Physical Therapy Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Fritz
authors.affiliation: Department of Exercise Science, Physical Therapy Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Middleton
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences and Research, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Krause
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences and Research, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.|Division of Physical Therapy, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.|Ralph H Johnson VAMC, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Gregory
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D020233:Gait Disorders, Neurologic / Q000209:etiology* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D015599:Trauma Severity Indices; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D016138:Walking; D055815:Young Adult