J Altern Complement Med, 2012; 18(2): 158-64, PMID: 22321155

Effect of whole-body vibration exercise on balance in women with fibromyalgia syndrome: a randomized controlled trial.

Year: 2012

Sanudo B, de Hoyo M, Carrasco L, Rodriguez-Blanco C, Oliva-Pascual-Vaca A, McVeigh JG
1 Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Seville , Seville, Spain .

Abstract

Abstract Objectives: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a 6-week "usual care" exercise program supplemented with whole-body vibration (WBV) to improve balance and strength in women with fibromyalgia (FM). Design: This was a randomized controlled study. Settings: The setting was a physical therapy department in an academic setting. Subjects: The subjects were 30 postmenopausal women with FM (age: 59+/-7.90 years). Interventions: Subjects were randomized into one of two groups: an experimental group (EG: n=15), which combined exercise training (2 days a week) with 3 days of WBV, and a control group (CG: n=15), who performed the same exercise training program (2 days a week) but without WBV. Outcome measures: Balance and muscle strength were measured at baseline and after the 6-week intervention. Results: Significant differences were found (p<0.05) between the study groups for the Medio-Lateral Stability Index (MLSI), when patients were assessed with their eyes open and closed. The effect size of the improvement was large with eyes closed (R(2)=0.260) and moderate when the eyes were open (R(2)=0.047). However, no significant differences were found (p>0.05) between the study groups for other outcomes. Conclusions: Women with FM may increase their MLSI by engaging in a 6-week traditional exercise program with supplementary WBV. This may have implications for falls prevention in this patient group.

GID: 2915; Last update: 13.03.2012