Arm and Leg Cycling Exercise After Stroke

University of Victoria

Status: Unknown

Conditions: Stroke

Treatments: Behavioral: Arm and Leg Cycling Exercise Program

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02232867

07-480-04d

Details and patient eligibility

About

It has been found that arm and leg cycling is similar to walking in terms of the muscle activation patterns and joint ranges of motion. In addition, arm and leg cycling and walking activate similar neural pathways. Another advantage of arm and leg cycling is that it involves coordination of all four limbs in a rhythmic movement. This may be particularly beneficial given previous findings that arm movement contributes to the activation of leg muscles during walking in humans. This is achieved with interconnected neural pathways that link the arms to the legs. These neural interlimb connections remain intact in stroke victims, such that maximizing the contribution of the arms to the legs may increase coordination for walking. Thus, the objectives of this research are to determine if arm and leg cycling can be used to increase the strength of interlimb connections and if this helps to improve walking ability in a post-stroke population. It is hypothesized that arm and leg cycling will transfer to improvements in walking in a post stroke population.

Full description

For those who have suffered a stroke, damage to the brain can result in a decreased ability to walk, thus decreasing quality of life in a significant way. Traditionally, body weight supported treadmill training has been used for walking rehabilitation; however, this therapy requires specialized technicians, equipment, and facilities. Arm and leg cycle ergometers, a device commonly found in a gym, could provide an inexpensive and readily accessible means for walking rehabilitation.

Enrollment: 20 estimated patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• stroke
• lives within the Victoria, Vancouver Island, and Vancouver mainland communities

Exclusion criteria

• inability to stand for 5 minutes unassisted

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: N/A

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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20 participants in 1 patient group

Arm and Leg Cycling Exercise Program

Experimental group

Description:

Multiple baseline test sessions will be used for the same participant to establish a meaningful baseline thus confirming consistency of all outcome measures prior to the intervention.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Arm and Leg Cycling Exercise Program