Feasibility study on a longer side-alternating vibration therapy protocol (15 min per session) in children and adolescents with mild cerebral palsy

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies on side-alternating vibration therapy (sVT) have usually used a 9 min intervention protocol. We performed a feasibility study aimed at assessing the safety, acceptability, and potential effectiveness of a longer sVT protocol (15 min per session) in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP). METHODS: Fifteen participants aged 5.2–17.4 years (median = 12.4 years) with CP GMFCS level II underwent 20 weeks of sVT consisting of 15 min sessions 4 days/week. Participants were assessed at baseline and after the intervention period, including mobility (six-minute walk-test; 6MWT), body composition (whole-body dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans), and muscle function (force plate). RESULTS: Adherence level to the 15 min VT protocol was 83% on average. There were no adverse events reported. After 20 weeks, there was some evidence for an increase in the walking distance covered in 6MWT (+43 m; p = 0.0018) and spine bone mineral density (+0.032 g/cm(2); p = 0.012) compared to baseline. CONCLUSIONS: The 15 min sVT protocol is feasible and well tolerated. The results also suggest potential benefits of this protocol to mobility and bone health. Randomized controlled trials are needed to reliably ascertain the potential effectiveness of a longer sVT protocol on physical function and body composition in young people with CP.