Background: Energy required for able-bodied individuals to perform common activities is well documented, whereas energy associated with daily activities among people with spinal cord injury (SCI) is less understood. Objective: To determine energy expended during several basic physical tasks specific to individuals with paraplegia due to motor-complete SCI. Methods: Sixteen adults with motor-complete SCI below T2 level and duration of paraplegia greater than 3 months were included. Oxygen consumption (Vo2), caloric expenditure, and heart rate were measured at rest and while participants performed lower body dressing (LBD), pop-over transfers (POTs), and manual wheelchair propulsion (MWP) at a self-selected pace. These data were used to calculate energy expenditure in standard metabolic equivalents (METs), as defined by 1 MET = 3.5 mL O2/kg/min, and in SCI METs using the conversion 1 SCI MET = 2.7 mL O2/kg/min. Results: Vo2 at rest was 3.0 ± 0.9 mL O2/kg/min, which equated to 0.9 ± 0.3 standard METs and 1.1 ± 0.4 SCI METs in energy expenditure. LBD required 3.2 ± 0.7 METs and 4.1 ± 0.9 SCI METs; POTs required 3.4 ± 1.0 METs and 4.5 ± 1.3 SCI METs; and MWP required 2.4 ± 0.6 METs and 3.1 ± 0.7 SCI METs. Conclusion: Resting Vo2 for adults with motor-complete paraplegia is 3.0 mL O2/kg/min, which is lower than standard resting Vo2 in able-bodied individuals. Progressively more energy is required to perform MWP, LBD, and POTs, respectively. Use of the standard METs formula may underestimate the level of intensity an individual with SCI uses to perform physical activities.
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April 12 2015
Energy Cost of Lower Body Dressing, Pop-Over Transfers, and Manual Wheelchair Propulsion in People with Paraplegia Due to Motor-Complete Spinal Cord Injury Free
Meaghan Lynch;
Meaghan Lynch
1
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
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Zachary McCormick;
Zachary McCormick
1
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
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Brian Liem;
Brian Liem
2
University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, Washington
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Geneva Jacobs;
Geneva Jacobs
3
Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital, Jacksonville, Florida
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Peter Hwang;
Peter Hwang
4
Howard A. Rusk Rehabilitation Center, Columbia, Missouri
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Thomas Hornby;
Thomas Hornby
1
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
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Leslie Rydberg;
Leslie Rydberg
1
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
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Elliot Roth
Elliot Roth
1
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
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Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil (2015) 21 (2): 140–148.
Citation
Meaghan Lynch, Zachary McCormick, Brian Liem, Geneva Jacobs, Peter Hwang, Thomas Hornby, Leslie Rydberg, Elliot Roth; Energy Cost of Lower Body Dressing, Pop-Over Transfers, and Manual Wheelchair Propulsion in People with Paraplegia Due to Motor-Complete Spinal Cord Injury. Top Spinal Cord Inj Rehabil 1 March 2015; 21 (2): 140–148. doi: https://doi.org/10.1310/sci2102-140
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