No outcomes evaluated the effect on participation restrictions .
NMES , as an adjunct to current rehabilitation practice s in critically ill patients , may maintain muscle strength .
OBJECTIVE To review , in conformance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review s and Meta-Analyses guidelines , the totality of evidence for the use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation ( NMES ) in the critical care setting , when compared with usual care , under all domains of the World Health Organisation , International Classification of Functioning , Disability and Health ( ICF ) framework .
PREVENTION OF DISUSE MUSCLE ATROPHY BY MEANS OF ELECTRICAL STIMULATION: MAINTENANCE OF PROTEIN SYNTHESIS
The effect of percutaneous electrical stimulation in preventing immobilisation-induced muscle atrophy was determined from measurements of quadriceps mass , composition , and rate of protein synthesis in seven men who had a fracture of one tibia immobilised in a long-leg cast for 6 weeks . These features were compared with those of fourteen men with similar injuries who did not use an electrical stimulator .  In men who did not use the stimulator , quadriceps cross-sectional area ( CSA ) at midthigh , measured by ultrasonography , fell by a mean ( SD ) 17 (10)% and the rate of muscle protein synthesis was 23 (10)% lower on the immobilised than on the control side ( 0.037 [ 0.016 ] vs 0.048 [0.02]%/h ) . In contrast , in those who used the stimulator , quadriceps CSA ( 55.5 [ 7.3 ] ) cm2 control leg , 50.9 [ 9.0 ] cm2 immobilised leg ) and the rate of muscle protein synthesis ( 0.053 [ 0.009 ] % /h control leg , 0.059 [ 0.012 ] % /h immobilised leg ) were similar on the two sides . The results suggest that brief periods of low-voltage percutaneous electrical stimulation will reduce quadriceps atrophy secondary to knee immobilisation , and that the mechanism includes prevention of the fall in muscle protein synthesis that usually occurs on immobilisation
No outcomes evaluated the effect on participation restrictions .
NMES , as an adjunct to current rehabilitation practice s in critically ill patients , may maintain muscle strength .
OBJECTIVE To review , in conformance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review s and Meta-Analyses guidelines , the totality of evidence for the use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation ( NMES ) in the critical care setting , when compared with usual care , under all domains of the World Health Organisation , International Classification of Functioning , Disability and Health ( ICF ) framework .