The effects of whole-body vibration (WBV) intervention on body functions,activity limitations,and participation restrictions in people with neurological conditions

Background:

Vibration intervention has recently become a popular modality in professional sport and fitness and has also been suggested to offer potential in augmenting exercises in the rehabilitation field for various neurological conditions.

Objectives:

The main objective of this review was to assess the effects of whole-body vibration (WBV) intervention on body functions, activity limitations, and participation restrictions in people with neurological conditions. The second objective was to assist healthcare professionals in their clinical practice by evaluating the main parameters of WBV intervention that may be of benefit.

Methods:

Electronic databases (EMBASE, Academic Search Complete, AMED, MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus, SPORTDiscus, PEDro, and Cochrane library) were searched. Intervention studies with a comparison group, investigating the effect of WBV intervention on people with neurological conditions, were included. The methodological quality of papers was independently assessed by two raters using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database scale.

Results:

Sixteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included. Only one paper was considered ‘excellent’ methodological quality study (9 out of 10 points). Four studies evaluated changes when WBV was compared to no intervention and two found significant improvements for strength, gait, and balance. Twelve compared WBV to other interventions and only two found significant differences in favour of the WBV group, for strength and gait.

Conclusion:

The cumulative findings for strength, balance, and gait suggest that while groups improve following WBV, this improvement is not consistently greater than either no intervention or a comparison intervention. This suggests insufficient evidence to support the effects of WBV training.