Evaluation of isometric strength in people with spinal cord injury: a review

Abstract

Introduction: isometric muscle strength in people with spinal cord injury is usually associated with locomotor activity, posture maintenance and activities of daily living. However, the variety of methods available for the evaluation hinders decision making on the part of the professionals involved. Objective: our objective was to review the literature of the area and determine the evaluation methods of isometric force and relationships with other components of health and physical fitness of people with spinal cord injury (SCI). Methods: consulted if the sites BIREME-Medline and SciELO, under the terms "spinal cord injury", "paraplegia", "tetraplegia", "wheelchair athletes" and "disabilities athletes," "isometric strength", "handgrip" and " handheld "with the help of the Boolean AND operator. Results: they were found 18 studies that met the inclusion criteria. The equipment available, the manual dynamometer is the most used. Sophisticated equipment can evaluate force components with increased functionality. There were no significant changes in hemodynamic variables during isometric strength tests. In conclusion, good isometric strength levels appear to correlate with increased functionality of people with SCI. Conclusion: however, they are lacking reference values related to the isometric strength for this population, especially when tested handgrip.

Impacts of home-based physical exercises on the health of people with spinal cord injury: a systematic review

“…It seems that the method can effectively produce beneficial tetanic effects in the majority of the investigated subjects, both in morphology and in muscle function. Some of these findings reiterate the importance of maintaining good levels of muscle strength in this population, especially when we consider activities of daily living like body weight transfers and support 3 .…”

“…Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a chronic problem caused by traumas or diseases that affect the spinal cord. The most common limitations that derive from SCI are total or partial paralysis of the lower and upper limbs and of the trunk, respiratory problems, alteration of the autonomic reflexes, reduction in physical capacity, and metabolic disorders [1][2][3] . SCI can cause a paralysis effect on two (paraplegia) or on the four (tetraplegia) limbs of the locomotor apparatus.…”

The effect of slalom practice on handgrip strength of water-skiing athletes with paraplegia

“…Para evitar la hipotermia y mantener el balance térmico, todos los esquiadores contaron con prendas de neopreno para el tronco y miembro superior, salvo manos. Se utilizó un dinamómetro mecánico de prensión manual digital (Takei TKK 5401 Grip-D, Tokyo, Japón), que registra en kilogramos de fuerza (precisión 0.1 kg, rango 5-100 kg), instrumento muy utilizado en la medición de la fuerza de prensión manual isométrica en personas con LM (De Lima, S. De Oliveira, L. De Oliveira, & Costa, 2016). La FPM se evaluó dentro del barco tras un calentamiento general (pre-entrenamiento), y justo al salir del agua finalizado el entrenamiento (post-entrenamiento).…”