Another BFR Success Story: A 2 Year Old with Spinal Instability
It’s comfortable to be inside the box. It’s warm, it smells like vanilla and lavender, and there’s a big fluffy couch with a cozy heated blanket and a fire crackling under a mahogany mantle. Mounted just above the mantle is a 60-inch flat screen TV with a Harry Potter marathon going strong…
Just as you wonder why Dumbledore didn’t simply use a Time Turner to go back in time and stop Voldemort from becoming, well, Voldemort, you remember that the comfort zone is a dangerous place. Innovation happens outside the box!
Today we are showcasing a study out of Japan that put the phrase, “think outside the box” to a whole new level. This case study involved a 2-year-old baby boy with Lissencephaly, West Syndrome, and flaccid quadriplegia. Basically, the little boy was severely physically and mentally challenged. The authors noted that he was not able to communicate other than facial expressions and required max assistance with feeding and voiding.
One of the most significant impairments that this little boy faced was spinal instability, specifically the neck. The authors explain that, “Ordinarily in an infant, the neck stabilizes at around 4 months of age, and this provides the foundation
for further motor development.” KAATSU combined with neuromuscular electric stimulation (NMES) was implemented in an attempt to improve overall spinal strength and stability to help set a foundation for further motor improvements. KAATSU straps were applied to bilateral proximal upper extremities at a pressure starting at 30-40 SKU. Appropriate pressure was determined based on the color of the hands, pulse, and the child's facial expressions. An electrical stimulation belt was used at the minimum intensity that produced a visible muscle contraction following three cycles of occlusion and reperfusion and ROM training 2x/week for 16 weeks. The NMES lasted 10 minutes.
After 16 weeks of treatment, the authors reported improvements in traction response, sitting tonic labyrinthine reflex, and spontaneous movement on elbows. The authors concluded that, “KAATSU training in combination with B-SES may be effective in children in whom neck stabilization cannot be observed, with severe mental and physical challenges. However, it will be necessary to increase the number of cases and evaluation methods to confirm our findings in the future.”
Reference:
Iwashita, H. (2015) A pediatric case with an unstabilized neck treated with skeletal muscle electrical stimulation and KAATSU training®. Int. J. KAATSU Training Res. 11: 7-12.
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****Remember, the use of BFR training should not be based solely on a success story. The decision to use BFR, or any treatment for that matter, should be based on the pillars of evidence-based practice.
