Early functional proprioceptive stimulation in high spinal cord injury: a pilot study.

The study included only a small number of patients, so it could not reliably detect real differences. A participant was excluded during treatment, and later comparisons were unbalanced. The planned treatment was not completed for all patients because of organisational constraints. Spasticity was measured clinically, and the scales may not have been sensitive enough for early changes. The single examiner may have detected milder spasticity, but this also makes comparisons with other studies difficult. The study could not separate effects by injury level, dose, or treatment duration because it was too small.

The authors report financial support for the research, authorship, or publication, and the equipment used belongs to Bicêtre Hospital.

Do not conclude that early vibration prevents spasticity or muscle wasting. The pilot showed no group differences in medium-term spasticity, atrophy, or motor recovery, and the short-term session effect was not statistically significant. All patients also received standard care, so vibration alone cannot be isolated as the cause of any observed change.