Effectiveness of aerobic physical training for spinal cord injury rehabilitation: A mini-review

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is an unfortunate and terrible condition that causes serious locomotor illness, spasticity, neurological pain, bowel-bladder problems, pressure ulcers, and a decline in functional capacities. Aerobic physical training is increasingly incorporated into rehabilitation programs; however, its specific effectiveness for individuals with SCI-related paraplegia remains unclear.

The objective of this review was to investigate the evidence on the effectiveness of aerobic physical training on rehabilitation outcomes in individuals with paraplegia following SCI.

A narrative mini-review was conducted using PubMed, PEDro, CINAHL, and EMBASE. Randomised controlled trials and clinical trials published in English between 2011 and 2022 were included where "spinal cord injury" was identified as the primary concern and "aerobic training" was one of the treatment options.

The search identified 54 studies, from which 11 were considered potentially suitable. Ultimately, four studies were selected for the narrative review conclusions. The included studies reported improvements across several outcome domains, including aerobic capacity, walking performance, muscle strength, and psychological well-being. However, the evidence base was limited by small sample sizes, variability in training protocols, and short intervention durations. Aerobic physical training appears to have beneficial effects on physical and psychological outcomes in individuals with SCI-related paraplegia. Despite methodological variations and limited studies, evaluations indicate that aerobic exercise positively impacts patients with SCI.

A longer rehabilitation program may be necessary to obtain more benefits from aerobic exercises in SCI patients. Further high-quality, long-term studies are needed to establish optimal aerobic training protocols for SCI rehabilitation.