Abstract
Study design:
A pilot randomised controlled trial.
Objectives:
The aims of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness and participant satisfaction of web-based physiotherapy in people with spinal cord injury (SCI).
Setting:
Community patients of a national spinal injury unit in a university teaching hospital, Scotland, UK.
Methods:
Twenty-four participants were recruited and randomised to receive 8 weeks of web-based physiotherapy (intervention), twice per week, or usual care (control). Individual exercise programmes were prescribed based on participants' abilities. The intervention was delivered via a website (www.webbasedphysio.com) and monitored and progressed remotely by the physiotherapist.
Results:
Participants logged on to the website an average of 1.4±0.8 times per week. Between-group differences, although not significant, were more pronounced for the 6-min walk test. Participants were positive about using web-based physiotherapy and stated that they would be happy to use it again and would recommend it to others. Overall, it was rated as either good or excellent.
Conclusions:
Web-based physiotherapy was feasible and acceptable for people with SCI. Participants achieved good compliance with the intervention and rated the programme highly and beneficial for health and well-being at various states after injury. The results of this study warrant further work with a more homogeneous sample.
Sponsorship:
This study was funded by the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit, Glasgow, UK.
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Acknowledgements
This study was funded by the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit, Glasgow. We thank Mr David Collins and the individuals with SCI for filming the exercises. We also thank Sister Karen McKarron, Nurse Laura McLean and Dr Mariel Purcell for their assistance in recruitment. Finally, we thank the study participants for taking part in the study.
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The website, www.webbasedphysio.com, was developed by two of the authors (EHC, LP) at the University of Glasgow. However, as this is not a commercial entity there are no conflicts of interest. All the other authors declare no conflict of interest.
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Coulter, E., McLean, A., Hasler, J. et al. The effectiveness and satisfaction of web-based physiotherapy in people with spinal cord injury: a pilot randomised controlled trial. Spinal Cord 55, 383–389 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2016.125
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2016.125
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