Effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation machine in managing neurological diseases - A retrospective study

Farah Naz; Danish Hussain; Hussain Ali; Qasim Raza; Farrukh Siddique

doi:10.12669/pjms.40.2(ICON).8966

Effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation machine in managing neurological diseases - A retrospective study

Pak J Med Sci. 2024 Jan;40(2ICON Suppl):S53-S57. doi: 10.12669/pjms.40.2(ICON).8966.

Authors

Farah Naz¹, Danish Hussain², Hussain Ali³, Qasim Raza⁴, Farrukh Siddique⁵

Affiliations

¹ Farah Naz, Department of Physical Therapy, Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.
² Danish Hussain, Department of Physical Therapy, Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.
³ Hussain Ali, Department of Physical Therapy, Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.
⁴ Qasim Raza, Department of Physical Therapy, Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.
⁵ Farrukh Siddique, Department of Physical Therapy, Indus Hospital and Health Network, Karachi, Pakistan.

Abstract

Background & objective: Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA) or stroke, Spinal Cord injury can lead to neurological diseases resulting in major loss in motor function causing hemiplegia or tetraplegia. In 2019, according to The Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) CVA/Stroke is the second leading cause of death and the third leading cause of death and disability combined, globally. Its prevalence vary drastically among South Asian countries. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) machine on neurologically impaired patients at the Physical Therapy department at IHHN, Karachi, Pakistan.

Method: In this retrospective study data was extracted from August 2016 to February 2022 on patients with neurological symptoms i.e. hemiplegia or paraplegia with muscle power of two or less on Manual Muscle Testing (MMT). The parameters for evaluating patients progress pre and post treatment were MMT results and their mobility status. The number of sessions ranged between 40 to 100 sessions of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) provided on alternate days according to the patient's need.

Result: Data of 51 patients who had completed their treatment were extracted and analyzed. The mean age of patients who completed treatment was 49.62 ± 17.26 years. Out of 51(100%), 30 (58.8%) were male and 21 (41.2%) were female. Pre- and post-treatment median (IQR) showed remarkable improvement in MMT of upper limb muscle (from 1.0 to 4.0) and lower limb muscle (from 2.0 to 4.0).

Conclusion: FES cycling is an effective treatment for patients with neurological impairments, as it resulted in improvement in both upper and lower limb muscle strength, along with mobility status.

Keywords: Cardio vascular accident (CV); Functional Electrical Stimulation; Manual Muscle Testing; Stroke; neurological diseases.