Aquatic plyometrics help rehabilitate patients with juvenile dermatomyositis

Aquatic-based plyometric (Aqua-PLYO) exercises are safe and improve muscle strength, fatigue, and functional ability in patients with juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM), as shown in a study.

The pilot crossover study randomly assigned 16 patients with JDM (mean age 13.44±2.85 years) to either undergo the Aqua-PLYO exercises (n=8) or receive the standard outpatient care (SoC; n=8). After a 1-month washout, the patients were assigned to the alternative treatment.

Efficacy outcomes including lower limb muscle strength, fatigue perception, functional ability, and disease activity were assessed before and after each treatment period.

Compared with SoC, the Aqua-PLYO intervention produced greater improvements in muscle strength (hip flexors and abductors, p<0.001; knee flexors, p<0.001; extensors, p=0.0008), fatigue perception (p<0.001), functional ability (p=0.009), and disease activity (p=0.0001). These benefits were independent of the treatment order.

The average bioequivalence of the Aqua-PLYO and SoC was not established at p=0.05 when using the shortest confidence intervals (100 [1–2α] percent) of the difference. This was because the upper and lower confidence bounds of all outcomes went beyond the acceptance limits.

There were no period or carryover effects observed in all outcomes.

JDM patients experience muscle weakness, tiredness, and loss of energy, which limit their abilities to perform their daily living activities. The present data highlight the potential of the Aqua-PLYO exercise as a safe and useful intervention to improve outcomes in this population.