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. 2018 Oct;42(4):268-275.
doi: 10.1097/NPT.0000000000000239.

Feasibility of Aerobic Exercise in the Subacute Phase of Recovery From Traumatic Brain Injury: A Case Series

Timothy P Morris  1 , David Costa-Miserachs, Pablo Rodriguez-Rajo, Jordi Finestres, Montserrat Bernabeu, Joyce Gomes-Osman, Alvaro Pascual-Leone, Jose Maria Tormos-Muñoz
Affiliations

Feasibility of Aerobic Exercise in the Subacute Phase of Recovery From Traumatic Brain Injury: A Case Series

Timothy P Morris et al. J Neurol Phys Ther. 2018 Oct.

Abstract

Background and purpose: Aerobic exercise is as important for individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) as for the general population; however, the approach to aerobic training may require some adaptation. The objective of the trial program was to examine the feasibility of introducing aerobic physical exercise programs into the subacute phase of multidisciplinary rehabilitation from moderate to severe TBI, which includes computerized cognitive training.

Case description: Five individuals undergoing inpatient rehabilitation with moderate or severe TBIs who also have concomitant physical injuries. All of these individuals were in the subacute phase of recovery from TBIs.

Intervention: An 8-week progressive aerobic physical exercise program. Participants were monitored to ensure that they could both adhere to and tolerate the exercise program. In addition to the physical exercise, individuals were undergoing their standard rehabilitation procedures that included cognitive training. Neuropsychological testing was performed to gain an understanding of each individual's cognitive function.

Outcomes: Participants adhered to both aerobic exercise and cognitive training. Poor correlations were noted between heart rate reserve and ratings of perceived effort. Two minor adverse events were reported.

Discussion: Despite concomitant physical injuries and cognitive impairments, progressive aerobic exercise programs seem feasible and well tolerated in subacute rehabilitation from moderate to severe TBI. Findings highlight the difficulty in measuring exercise intensity in this population.Video Abstract available for more insights from the authors (see Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, available at: http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A235).

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest This project did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Flow diagram of the progressive aerobic exercise intervention
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Individual mean %HRR at 15-minute intervals (1 minute average of HRR before and after each 15-minute mark) with standard error bars. Key indicates graph for each Participant (P) 1–4.
Figure 3 A -D.
Figure 3 A -D.
Scatter plots for individual mean %HRR and mean RPE at 15-minutes intervals with Pearson correlation coefficient values for Participants 1–4 over the course of the 8-week program. A, Participant 1; B, Participant 2; C, Participant 3; D, Participant 4;.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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