Key result
Men with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury who regularly practiced physical exercise exhibited significantly lower SDNN (60.2 ms) compared to healthy controls (85.4 ms).
Why the study?
Does regular physical exercise alter the cardiac autonomic profile in men with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury?
Cross-Sectional (n=20)
Does regular physical exercise alter the cardiac autonomic profile in men with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury?
Regular physical exercise in subjects with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury is associated with changes in cardiac autonomic modulation, suggesting potential remodeling of damaged axons.
Persistent HRV reduction despite exercise in cervical SCI warrants monitoring; leaves open optimal autonomic-targeted interventions.
The aim was investigate the time-course of cardiac autonomic response in men with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) practitioners or not of physical exercise. Twenty men were separated into three groups: control group without SCI (CON; 28.3 ± 4.5 yrs; 178.4 ± 6.5 cm; 82.1 ± 6.8 kg; n=8), regularly engaged in strength training and low aerobic training; exercise group with cervical SCI (EG, 32.3 ± 4.5 yrs, 175.1 ± 5.3 cm, 73.6 ± 9.6 Kg; n=8) that practiced wheelchair rugby and sedentary group with cervical SCI (SG, 30.8 ± 5.3 yrs, 173.4 ± 10.1 cm, 69.7 ± 7.1 Kg; n=4) who did not practice physical exercise. Heart rate variability variables were calculated from ECG, in rest. CON showed high values compared to EG and SG of: standard deviation of R-R intervals (SDNN), proportion of adjacent R-R intervals differing by more than 50 ms, number of interval differences of successive NN intervals greater than 50 ms, root mean square of successive differences and the high-frequency spectral power. SDNN was significantly lower in EG compared to CON. changes in cardiac autonomic function could be noted in subjects with cervical SCI regularly engaged in an exercise program.
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Martins et al. (2018) conducted a cross-sectional in Incomplete cervical spinal cord injury (n=20). Physical exercise (wheelchair rugby) vs. Sedentary subjects with cervical SCI and healthy controls was evaluated on Standard deviation of R-R intervals (SDNN) at rest (p=<0.0001). Men with incomplete cervical spinal cord injury who regularly practiced physical exercise exhibited significantly lower SDNN (60.2 ms) compared to healthy controls (85.4 ms).
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