FES Bike Race preparation to Cybathlon 2016 by EMA team: a short case report

Abstract

FES-assisted cycling has been recommended to people struggling to emerge from a disability to more functioning life after spinal cord injury. Recommendations issued by a gowing number of scientific papershas promised toimprove body composition and physical activity levels, as well as to controlinvoluntary muscle response; favoring activity and participation which break new grounds in expanding locomotion, leisure and occupational options for people with paraplegia and tetraplegia. In this report we described our experience to select and prepare a pilot to compete in the FES Bike Race modality at Cybathlon 2016 in Kloten (Zurick). He was a man, 38 years old, with a complete spinal cord injury, level T9, three years of injury. He took part in a two preparation phases lasting respectively 18 and 12 weeks each: (1st) pre-FES-cycling and a (2nd) FES-cycling. The 1st phase aimed to explore electrical stimulation response in the quadricps, hamstrings and gluteus muscles; searching for a standard muscular recruitment enable to propel the pedals of a trike. Following, in the 2nd phase, stationary to mobile FES-cycling was performed at the same time the development of the automation and control systems were being incorporated in the trike. We adapted a commercial tadpole trycicle anda pilot controlled system. Although we had planned a three session by week protocol, for reasons of term and time to finish the trike development and be prepared to compete, in the last two weeks before the Cybatlhon an intense level of exercise was maintained. After the race, we noticedinflammatory signs on the left knee which later revealed a patella fracture. The video footage analysis confirmed ithappened during the race’s first lap.

Contributions of the Cybathlon championship to the literature on functional electrical stimulation cycling among individuals with spinal cord injury: A bibliometric review

“…None of the studies reported “actual probability value” (Criterion 10), “intervention was representative of that in use in the source population” (Criterion 13), “an attempt made to blind study subjects to the intervention” (Criterion 14), “an attempt made to blind the intervention outcomes” (Criterion 15), and “sufficient power to detect a clinically important effect” (Criterion 27). With the exception of reports from Guimarães et al 33 and Sijobert et al, 34 the studies did not report “adverse events that may be a consequence of the intervention” (Criterion 8). With the exception of work by Laubacher et al 8 and Sijobert et al, 34 the studies did not report “subjects randomized to intervention groups” (Criterion 23), and with the exception of the report from Laubacher et al, 8 the studies did not report “randomized intervention assignment concealed from both patients and health care staff until recruitment was completed” (Criterion 24).…”

Development of a High-Power Capacity Open Source Electrical Stimulation System to Enhance Research into FES-Assisted Devices: Validation of FES Cycling

“…Different muscle group combinations can be electrically evoked to perform the cycling movement [22][23][24]. FES cycling strategies usually involve the electrical stimulation of the quadriceps, hamstrings, tibialis anterior, gastrocnemius, and gluteal muscles [25].…”

“…Different muscle group combinations can be electrically evok cling movement [22][23][24]. FES cycling strategies usually involve the of the quadriceps, hamstrings, tibialis anterior, gastrocnemius, and As most methodologies suggest the activation of more than two mus [26,27], we developed an 8-channel electrostimulation system with pology to study a broader range of possible muscle combinations modalities.…”

Reporting for Duty: The duty cycle in Functional Electrical Stimulation research. Part I: Critical commentaries of the literature

“…21 What is interesting is the role of the duty cycle in preparing for the event. In a report by Guimarães et al, 22 the authors discussed how duty cycle was changed from 1:3 to 1:2 to 1:1, when stimulating a pilot for pre-training. The authors discussed how duty cycle was increased based on the pilots’ tolerability of exercise.…”