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Objective To evaluate the effect of transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation on prevention of intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with mechanical ventilation. Methods A prospective randomized controlled study was conducted. Sixty COPD patients aged 18-85 years old who were accepted mechanical ventilation therapy admitted to general intensive care unit (ICU) of the First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Medicine from October 2017 to October 2018 were enrolled. Patients were divided into control group (n = 30) and intervention group (n = 30) by random number table method. All patients were accepted routine treatment, and on this basis, the intervention group was applied transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation on the extremities (twice a day, 30 minutes each time) after 24 hours of admission until ICU discharge. The Medical Research Council muscle strength score (MRC-Score), grip strength, incidence of ICU-AW on the 7th day after admission and on the day of ICU discharge; modified Barthel index score on the day of ICU discharge; and duration of mechanical ventilation, the length of ICU stay, and the length of hospital stay were compared between the two groups. Results Twenty-nine and 27 patients in the control group and the intervention group respectively finally completed the study in dividually. There was no significant difference in gender, age, Barthel index score before 2 weeks of ICU admission, body mass index or acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ(APACHEⅡ) in ICU between the two groups. There was no significant difference in the MRC-Score, grip strength or incidence of ICU-AW on the 7th day after ICU admission between the two groups. Compared to the control group, the MRC-Score, grip strength and Barthel index score in the intervention group were significantly increased [MRC-Score: 55.97±8.43 vs. 46.32±7.36, grip strength (kg): 33.46±11.62 vs. 27.42±9.64, Barthel index score:46.04±5.46 vs. 42.13±3.32, all P < 0.05], the incidence rate of ICU-AW was significantly decreased [7.4% (2/27) vs. 31.0% (9/29), P < 0.05], and duration of mechanical ventilation, the length of ICU stay, the length of hospital stay were significantly shortened [duration of mechanical ventilation (days): 5.12±2.01 vs. 7.24±4.35, the length of ICU stay (days): 8.34±2.36 vs. 10.45±2.62, the length of hospital stay (days): 13.21±2.21 vs. 15.38±3.67, all P < 0.05]. Conclusion Transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation can effectively improve the muscle strength of COPD patients with mechanical ventilation and reduce the incidence of ICU-AW.
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OBJECTIVE: To investigate changes in lumbar multifidus (LM) and deep lumbar stabilizing abdominal muscles (transverse abdominis [TrA] and obliquus internus [OI]) during transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) of lumbar paraspinal L4-L5 regions using real-time ultrasound imaging (RUSI). METHODS: Lumbar paraspinal regions of 20 healthy physically active male volunteers were stimulated at 20, 50, and 80 Hz. Ultrasound images of the LM, TrA, OI, and obliquus externus (OE) were captured during stimulation at each frequency. RESULTS: The thicknesses of superficial LM and deep LM as measured by RUSI were greater during NMES than at rest for all three frequencies (p<0.05). The thicknesses in TrA, OI, and OE were also significantly greater during NMES of lumbar paraspinal regions than at rest (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The studied transcutaneous NMES of the lumbar paraspinal region significantly activated deep spinal stabilizing muscle (LM) and the abdominal lumbar stabilizing muscles TrA and OI as evidenced by RUSI. The findings of this study suggested that transcutaneous NMES might be useful for improving spinal stability and strength in patients having difficulty initiating contraction of these muscles.