Investigation of the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension

Introduction: Muscle strength impairment has been shown before in patients with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH). Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has been proposed to increase muscle strength in patients with chronic diseases who are unable or unwilling to exercise. However, effects of NMES in patients with PAH remains unclear. Aims: To investigate the effects of NMES on physical and psychosocial variables in patients with PAH. Method: In totally 22 patients (treatment=11, control=11) completed this study. For the treatment group, NMES was applied to the bilateral deltoid and quadriceps femoris muscles with 50 Hz for 3 days/week, 8 weeks. Muscle strength (hand-held dynamometer), muscle cross-sectional area and thickness (ultrasound), arterial stiffness (pulse wave velocity), exercise capacity (6 Minute Walk Test), physical activity (IPAQ), and quality of life (Nottingham Health Profile) were assessed. Results: There was no significant difference in the demographic and clinical characteristics between the groups (p>0.05). Patients in the treatment group showed a significant improvement in muscle strength, grip strength, rectus femoris muscle cross-sectional area and quadriceps femoris muscle thickness, pulse wave velocity, 6 minutes walking distance, physical activity level and quality of life from the baseline assessments (p Conclusion: This study showed that the NMES increases peripheral muscle strength, muscle cross-sectional area and thickness, exercise capacity, physical activity level, and quality of life, reduced arterial stiffness. The NMES intervention is an effective method for cardiopulmonary rehabilitation in patients with PAH.