Abstract
Background: Both burn and diabetes mellitus (DM) cause functional and psychosocial disabilities. A low-cost and safe approach is greatly required to reduce these disabilities and the effects of aerobic exercise have generated varied evidence to date. The aim of the study was to explore the effects of 6 weeks of intermittent aerobic exercise (IAE) on aerobic capacity, muscle fatigability, and quality of life (QoL) in diabetic burned patients (DBPs).
Methods: The study design was a prospective, single-blind, randomized controlled trial. Between March 2018 and July 2019 thirty-six (22 males and 16 females) diabetic burned patients were included in the study, their age ranged 3555 years. They were clinically diagnosed with type 2 DM and total body surface area (TBSA) was 15-30%. The participants were randomly assigned to the IAE group (n = 18) and controls (n = 18). Aerobic capacity, muscle fatigability, and QoL were assessed initially and repeated after 6 weeks of intervention.
Results: Initial data demonstrated non-significant differences between the IAE and control groups (p > 0.05). Comparing pre- and post-intervention outcomes showed significant improvement of VO(2)max, muscle fatigability, QoL domains in the IAE group after 6 weeks intervention (p < 0.05) and non-significant changes in the control group (p > 0.05). The IAE group showed statistically significant improvement more than the control group in all outcome measures (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: 6 weeks of intermittent aerobic exercise is an effective alternative modality to improve aerobic capacity, muscle fatigability, and QoL in DBPs. Adherence to intermittent aerobic exercise should be practicable into mainstream clinical intervention for those patients. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.