Abstract
BackgroundNeuromuscular electric stimulation is widely used for muscle strengthening in clinical practice and for preventative purposes. However, there are few reports on the effects of electric stimulation on the immune response of the organism, and even those mainly describe the changes observed immediately after the electrotherapeutic procedures. The objective of our study was to examine the possible immunological consequences of moderate low-frequency transcutaneous neuromuscular electric stimulation for quadriceps muscle strengthening in healthy individuals.MethodsThe study included 10 healthy volunteers (5 males, 5 females, mean age 37.5 years). At the beginning and after a two-week electric stimulation program, muscle strength was measured and peripheral blood was collected to analyse white blood cells by flow cytometry for the expression of cell surface antigens (CD3, CD19, CD4, CD8, CD4/8, DR/3, NK, Th reg, CD25 + CD3+, CD25 + CD4+, CD25 + CD8+, CD69 + CD3+, CD69 + CD4+, CD69 + CD8+) and phagocytosis/oxidative killing function.ResultsMuscle strength slightly increased after the program on the dominant and the nondominant side. No statistically or clinically significant difference was found in any of the measured blood and immune cells parameters as well as phagocytosis and oxidative burst function of neutrophil granulocytes and monocytes one day after the program.ConclusionsThe program of transcutaneous low-frequency electric stimulation slightly strengthened the quadriceps femoris muscle while producing no changes in measured immunological parameters. Hence, therapeutic low-frequency electric stimulation appears not to be affecting the immune response of healthy persons.
Highlights
Neuromuscular electric stimulation is widely used for muscle strengthening in clinical practice and for preventative purposes
Peripheral electric stimulation is mostly used as neuromuscular electric stimulation (NMES) to improve muscle performance [2,3], and for pain management [4,5], for healing process enhancement in bone and chronic wounds [6,7], and for increasing blood circulation
There was no difference between the sides in mean Maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) increase (p = 0.979 and p = 1.000 from t-test and Wilcoxon signed-rank matched-pairs test (WSRMPT), respectively)
Summary
Neuromuscular electric stimulation is widely used for muscle strengthening in clinical practice and for preventative purposes. The objective of our study was to examine the possible immunological consequences of moderate low-frequency transcutaneous neuromuscular electric stimulation for quadriceps muscle strengthening in healthy individuals. The use of low-frequency electric stimulation for therapeutic purposes has been increasing during the last decades [1]. Much effort is being invested in clarifying possible health risk of extremely low frequency (ELF) electromagnetic fields from the environment and from different man-made sources. There are increasing concerns of possible effects of different sources of electromagnetic fields on human health, one of them being high-voltage power lines [16]. Many medical diagnostic and therapeutic applications of ELF fields operate in the same frequency range, but with quite different electric field strength [17]. There is evidence on the connection between certain electrotherapeutic regimes and the nervous-endocrine-immune interactions [18], whereby proper functioning of the immune system is essential for good health
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