Do aerobic exercises really improve aerobic capacity of stroke survivors? A systematic review and meta-analysis
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Published on: July 5, 2017
Mikhail Saltychev1, Tuulikki Sjögren, Esa Bärlund
1Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku Turku, Finland - mikhail.saltychev@gmail.com.
Background:
Even if aerobic exercises are recommended to stroke survivors, the clinical significance of the effect of these exercises on aerobic capacity has not been definitely shown.
Aim:
To investigate, if there is evidence that aerobic capacity, measured by maximal oxygen consumption, can be improved by aerobic training?
Design:
Systematic review and meta-analysis, all settings.
Setting:
Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine of a University Hospital.
Population:
Adult stroke survivors.
Methods:
Search on CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Pedro. Study selection and extraction based on the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews. Random effects meta-analysis.
Results:
Based on 13 randomized aerobic training improved aerobic capacity on average by 2.5 mL/kg/min. Four of the included studies had low risk of bias.
Conclusions:
There is strong evidence that aerobic training is capable of improving aerobic capacity of stroke survivors, supporting the routine recommendation for training after stroke.
Clinical Rehabilitation Impact:
It is not known, if one type of training is more effective than others in stroke survivors.
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