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Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Home-Based Prescribed Pulmonary Exercise in Patients with Stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Published on: August 24, 2019
Effect of rowing on pulmonary functions in children with Down syndrome
Ehab Mohamed Abd El Kafy1, Omar Farouk Helal
1Department of Physical Therapy for Disturbances of Growth and Developmental Disorders in Children and Its Surgery (Dr Kafy), Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt; Physical Therapy Department (Drs Kafy and Helal), Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Umm Al Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Purpose:
To examine effects of a rowing exercise regimen versus a chest physical therapy program on pulmonary function in children with Down syndrome.
Methods:
Twenty-nine participants of both sexes, between 8 to 12 years of age, participated in this study. They were assigned randomly into 2 study groups. The first group (A) received a chest physical therapy program, while the second group (B) received an aerobic exercise regimen using a rowing ergometer. Vital capacity, forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume after 1 second, and peak expiratory flow rate were measured before and after 12 successive weeks of treatment.
Results:
Significant improvements in all measured variables were found posttreatment in both study groups. No significant difference between the 2 groups was found posttreatment.
Conclusion:
Rowing exercise could be effective in improving pulmonary functions in children with Down syndrome.
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