Brazilian physiotherapists have studied variations in physiological parameters in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) in a seated position, in an aqueous environment or in an aerial environment:
- 16 DMD patients took part in an experiment in two different environments, measuring energy expenditure (in particular, oxygen consumption) and other vital parameters (functional capacity, heart rate),
- participants were aged 12 on average, and half of them were still walking,
- the study was carried out in a seated position, first in the open air, then in a swimming pool with a water temperature of around 33-35 degrees,
- little or no variation was noted in the two types of environment.
This study is one of the few attempts to objectively measure the benefits and tolerability of hydrotherapy in DMD.
