Criterion validity for three of these measures was established in NSCLC but not the reliability or responsiveness .
Background The measurement properties of instruments used to assess functional capacity , physical activity and muscle strength in participants with non-small cell lung cancer ( NSCLC ) have not been systematic ally review ed .
Method Objectives : To identify outcome measures used to assess these outcomes in participants with NSCLC ; and to evaluate , synthesis e and compare the measurement properties of the outcome measures identified .
Randomized controlled pilot study of neuromuscular electrical stimulation of the quadriceps in patients with non-small cell lung cancer.
Patients with lung cancer experience muscle wasting and weakness . Therapeutic exercise may be beneficial but is not always practical . An alternative approach may be neuromuscular electrical stimulation ( NMES ) of the quadriceps muscles , but this has not been formally examined in patients with cancer . Thus , we have undertaken this pilot study to assess feasibility and inform the design of future studies . Sixteen patients were r and omized to receive usual care ( control group ) or usual care plus NMES for four weeks . NMES consisted of daily stimulation to both thighs for up to 30minutes ( frequency 50Hz , " on " cycle 11%-25 % ) . Adherence was assessed by a self-report diary and a semistructured evaluation form . Quadriceps muscle strength , exercise endurance , and free-living physical activity were assessed using a Cybex NORM dynamometer , an endurance shuttle walk test  , and an ActivPAL accelerometer ( mean daily step count ) , respectively . Changes in outcome from baseline were compared between groups by mean differences and their 95 % confidence intervals using independent t-test ( P=0.05 ) . Median ( range ) adherence to the program was 80 % ( 69%-100 % ) . All patients found the NMES device easy to use . Changes in outcome favored the NMES group , with mean differences of 9.4 Nm ( 21 % ) in quadriceps muscle strength , 768 steps ( 15 % ) in free-living activity , and 138 m ( 8 % ) in exercise endurance , but none of the differences were statistically significant . In conclusion , NMES warrants further study in patients with lung cancer
Criterion validity for three of these measures was established in NSCLC but not the reliability or responsiveness .
Background The measurement properties of instruments used to assess functional capacity , physical activity and muscle strength in participants with non-small cell lung cancer ( NSCLC ) have not been systematic ally review ed .
Method Objectives : To identify outcome measures used to assess these outcomes in participants with NSCLC ; and to evaluate , synthesis e and compare the measurement properties of the outcome measures identified .