STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of body weight-support treadmill training (BWSTT) for muscle atrophy management in people with spinal cord injury (SCI). SETTING: Studies from multiple countries were included. METHODS: The following databases were consulted from January to October 2013: PubMed, Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), ScienceDirect and LILACS. The methodological quality of the articles included was classified according to Jovell and Navarro-Rubio. RESULTS: A total of five studies were included. These studies reported a significant association between BWSTT and increased trophism of the lower limb muscles of humans with SCI, which was observed as an increase in the cross-sectional area. Moreover, improvements in the ability to generate peak torque, contract the knee extensors and ankle plantarflexors with reduction of body weight support were observed after BWSTT. CONCLUSION: The results were considered inconclusive because of the low methodological quality of the articles, which was because of the absence of sample homogeneity, thereby providing a low level of evidence for clinical practice.
Reprinted by permission from Spinal Cord, Macmillan Publishers Ltd.

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