Impact of Passive Leg Cycling in Persons With Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review

Background: Passive leg cycling is an important clinical tool available for rehabilitation after spinal cord injury (SCI). Passive cycling can be used to derive exercise-related benefits in patients with poor motor control. There have been a number of studies examining the effects of passive cycling on a variety of outcomes. There is need for a systematic assessment of the cycling parameters and the associated clinical changes in cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and musculoskeletal outcomes after passive cycling. Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of passive leg cycling interventions on cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and musculoskeletal outcomes post SCI, and to describe intensity, duration, and type of passive leg cycling post SCI. Methods: PRISMA guided systematic review of literature based on searches in the following databases: PubMed/MEDLINE, PEDro, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar. Peer-reviewed publications that were written in English were included if they described the effects of a...