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Impact of expiratory strength training in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Author(s) -
Plowman Emily K.,
Watts Stephanie A.,
Tabor Lauren,
Robison Raele,
Gaziano Joy,
Domer Amanda S.,
Richter Joel,
Vu Tuan,
Gooch Clifton
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
muscle and nerve
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.025
H-Index - 145
eISSN - 1097-4598
pISSN - 0148-639X
DOI - 10.1002/mus.24990
Subject(s) - medicine , amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , spirometry , swallowing , physical therapy , physical medicine and rehabilitation , anesthesia , surgery , disease , asthma
: We evaluated the feasibility and impact of expiratory muscle strength training (EMST) on respiratory and bulbar function in persons with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Methods : Twenty‐five ALS patients participated in this delayed intervention open‐label clinical trial. Following a lead‐in period, patients completed a 5‐week EMST protocol. Outcome measures included: maximum expiratory pressure (MEP); physiologic measures of swallow and cough; and penetration–aspiration scale (PAS) scores. Results : Of participants who entered the active phase of the study ( n = 15), EMST was well tolerated and led to significant increases in MEPs and maximum hyoid displacement during swallowing post‐EMST ( P < 0.05). No significant differences were observed for PAS scores or cough spirometry measures. Conclusions : EMST was feasible and well tolerated in this small cohort of ALS patients and led to improvements in expiratory force‐generating pressures and swallow kinematics. Further investigation is warranted to confirm these preliminary findings. Muscle Nerve 54 : 48–53, 2016