Effects of intermittent aerobic training on exercise capacity, pulmonary functions, and gait parameters in asthmatic children with cerebral palsy: a randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE: There is no evidence that exercise training program is effective in improv-ing aerobic capacity, musculoskeletal abnormali-ties, and quality of life in asthmatic children with ce-rebral palsy (CP). Therefore, the effects of intermit-tent aerobic training on exercise capacity, pulmo-nary function, and gait parameters in asthmatic CP children have been evaluated in the current study.PATIENTS AND METHODS: This clinical trial in-cluded thirty-six asthmatic CP children between Jan-uary and December 2021. Their ages were between 7 and 12 years old. They were randomly allocated to the intermittent aerobic exercise group (IAEG) and a control group (CG), with 18 per each group. The children have been recruited for the 10-week inter-ventional program. The 6-minute walk test (6MWT), forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), stride length, cadence, gait speed, and pediatric asthma quality of life (PAQLQ) were all measured before and after treatment.RESULTS: Pre-post analysis in the IAEG showed noteworthy changes (6MWT, p=0.005; FVC, p=0.002; FEV1, p<0.001; overall score of PAQLQ, p<0.001; stride length, p<0.001; cadence, p<0.001; and gait speed, p<0.001), while the control group showed non -signifi-cant changes (p>0.05). There were noteworthy differ-ences between IAEG and CG post-treatment (6MWT, p=0.019; FVC, p=0.031; FEV1, p<0.001; overall score of PAQLQ, p=0.031; stride length, p<0.001; cadence, p=0.009; and gait speed, p<0.001) in favor of the IAEG.CONCLUSIONS: Depending on the study find-ings, 10 weeks of intermittent aerobic exercise may improve exercise capacity, pulmonary function, gait parameters, and quality of life in asthmatic CP chil-dren. Based on what we found, this protocol should be used in pulmonary rehabilitation programs for children with CP who have breathing problems.