A Scoping Review of the Characteristics of Activity-based Therapy Interventions Across the Continuum of Care for People Living With Spinal Cord Injury or Disease

Anita Kaiser; Katherine Chan; Maureen Pakosh; Shane McCullum; Chris Rice; José Zariffa; Kristin E Musselman

doi:10.1016/j.arrct.2022.100218

A Scoping Review of the Characteristics of Activity-based Therapy Interventions Across the Continuum of Care for People Living With Spinal Cord Injury or Disease

Arch Rehabil Res Clin Transl. 2022 Jul 26;4(4):100218. doi: 10.1016/j.arrct.2022.100218. eCollection 2022 Dec.

Authors

Anita Kaiser^{1

2

3}, Katherine Chan¹, Maureen Pakosh⁴, Shane McCullum⁵, Chris Rice¹, José Zariffa^{1

2

6

7}, Kristin E Musselman^{1

2

8}

Affiliations

¹ KITE-Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, University Health Network, Toronto.
² Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto.
³ Canadian Spinal Research Organization, Toronto.
⁴ Library & Information Services, University Health Network, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto.
⁵ Stan Cassidy Centre for Rehabilitation, Horizon Health Network, Fredericton.
⁶ Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto.
⁷ Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto.
⁸ Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

Abstract

Objective: To identify the characteristics of activity-based therapy (ABT) that individuals with spinal cord injury and disease (SCI/D) participate in across the continuum of care.

Data sources: A search of 8 databases was conducted from inception to 4 March 2020: Medline, CINAHL, Embase, Emcare, PEDro, APA PsycINFO, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and the CENTRAL. The search strategy used terms identifying the population (SCI/D) and concept (ABT).

Study selection: Original studies involving individuals with SCI/D ≥16 years of age participating in ABT interventions for >1 session were included in the review. The Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines for scoping reviews were followed. The initial search produced 2306 records. Title, abstract, and full-text screening by 2 independent reviewers yielded 140 articles.

Data extraction: Data extraction was conducted by 3 independent reviewers and charted according to key themes. Data fields included participant demographics, ABT interventions, exercises, parameters, technology, and setting. Data synthesis included frequency counts and descriptive analysis of key themes.

Data synthesis: Eighty percent of participants were male. Eighty-seven percent of studies included individuals with tetraplegia (26% exclusive). Fifty-six percent of studies occurred in a research lab. Fifty-four percent of studies were single modality interventions encompassing the whole body (71%). Sixteen main types of ABT exercises were identified. The most common were treadmill training (59%), muscle strengthening (36%), and overground walking (33%). Electrical stimulation (50%) and virtual reality (6%) were used in combination with an ABT exercise. Eighty-four types of parameters were identified. Six were general intervention parameters and 78 were specific to the type of ABT exercise. Sixteen main categories of technology were reported. The most common were motorized treadmills (47%) and transcutaneous electrical stimulation (44%).

Conclusions: The characteristics of ABT are diverse in scope. The results will inform the content to include in tools that track ABT participation and performance.

Keywords: ABT, activity-based therapy; JBI, Joanna Briggs Institute; MMAT, Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool; PCC, Population, Concept, and Context; PRISMA-ScR, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews; Rehabilitation; Review; SCI/D, spinal cord injury and disease; Spinal cord injuries.

Publication types

Review