Alashram Anas R
Department of Physiotherapy, Middle East University, Airport Road, Amman, 11831, Jordan.
Department of Human Sciences and Promotion of the Quality of Life, San Raffaele Roma Open University, Rome, Italy.
Neurol Sci. 2025 May;46(5):2027-2039. doi: 10.1007/s10072-025-08012-1. Epub 2025 Jan 21.
Gait impairments are one of the popular consequences of spinal cord injury (SCI). Acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH) is an innovative treatment that has recently been used to enhance motor function in patients with neurological conditions. This review aims to examine the effects of AIH on gait post-SCI, verify who most likely would benefit from the treatment, and recognize the best treatment protocol, if possible.
The search was conducted in "PubMed, MEDLINE, The Cochrane Library, Scopus, PEDro, and Web of Science" databases from inception to October 2024. This review included randomized trials involving individuals with SCI who received AIH, alone or in combination with other interventions, compared with active or passive comparators, and evaluated at least one outcome related to gait ability. The quality of the included studies was measured using the "Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro)".
Nine studies met the eligibility criteria. In total, 158 individuals with SCI (mean age 44.45 years; 86% male) were involved in this analysis. The included studies' PEDro scores ranged from 5 to 10, with a median of 8. The main findings showed that AIH improves gait speed, walking endurance, dynamic balance, and plantar flexor strength in individuals with SCI.
AIH is a safe intervention for individuals with SCI. This review underscores the potential benefits of AIH for improving gait abilities in SCI with motor-incomplete injuries (ASIA grades C and D) at cervical, thoracic, and lumbar levels. Further studies are recommended to verify our findings.
步态障碍是脊髓损伤（SCI）常见的后果之一。急性间歇性缺氧（AIH）是一种创新疗法，最近已被用于改善神经系统疾病患者的运动功能。本综述旨在研究AIH对脊髓损伤后步态的影响，确定最可能从该治疗中获益的人群，并尽可能确定最佳治疗方案。
检索了从数据库建立至2024年10月的“PubMed、MEDLINE、Cochrane图书馆、Scopus、PEDro和科学网”数据库。本综述纳入了涉及脊髓损伤个体的随机试验，这些个体单独或与其他干预措施联合接受AIH治疗，与主动或被动对照进行比较，并评估至少一项与步态能力相关的结果。使用“物理治疗证据数据库（PEDro）”评估纳入研究的质量。
九项研究符合纳入标准。本分析共纳入158例脊髓损伤个体（平均年龄44.45岁；86%为男性）。纳入研究的PEDro评分范围为5至10，中位数为8。主要研究结果表明，AIH可改善脊髓损伤个体的步态速度、步行耐力、动态平衡和跖屈肌力量。
AIH对脊髓损伤个体是一种安全的干预措施。本综述强调了AIH对于改善颈、胸和腰段运动不完全损伤（ASIA分级C和D）的脊髓损伤患者步态能力的潜在益处。建议进一步研究以验证我们的发现。
