ArticlesResistance training effectiveness in patients with charcot-marie-tooth disease: Recommendations for exercise prescription1
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Participants
Twenty patients with CMT (11 women, 9 men; mean age, 45.2±8.9y) participated. They took part in a larger investigation of the effects of creatine monohydrate on strength in CMT.16 Volunteers were diagnosed with CMT through family history and electrophysiologic and/or genetic testing. Eighteen patients had CMT1A and 2 had axonal abnormalities more consistent with CMT type 2. Excluded were patients less than 18 years of age, people who had used nutritional supplements (vitamins excluded) or
Participant demographics
There were no differences between women and men in age (44±7y vs 46±11y), height (1.64±0.1m vs 1.76±0.1m), weight (84±25kg vs 91±22kg), or body mass index (BMI; 31±9kg/m2 vs 29±6kg/m2).
Self-reported compliance
Patients tolerated the resistance training well; the overall compliance rate was 87%±26%. Compliance with exercise training was defined as the actual number of training sessions completed divided by the possible number of training sessions. There was no difference in compliance between men (84±33%) and women
Discussion
This study showed that a simple, home-based, 12-week progressive resistance training program improved strength and ADLs and was equally effective for men and women with CMT. Furthermore, patients adhered to the ADL-based training program and suffered no injuries.
A major challenge when developing an exercise therapy program is to design a regimen with which patients will comply. To optimize compliance, our program (1) was conservative in progression to minimize muscle soreness, fatigue, and
Conclusions
The progressive resistance training program tested in this study improved strength and ADLs equally in men and women. A resistance exercise prescription template was designed for patients with CMT based on timed ADL scores for chair rise and supine rise.
Future investigations should attempt (1) to determine optimal resistance training intensity and duration for these patients, (2) to examine the combined effects of strength and endurance training in CMT, and (3) to investigate whether resistance
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