On the road to Cybathlon 2024: lessons learned from the Polimi FES-bike team.
D Savona, N Sanna, F Eterovich and 7 others
PMID 41689040WHAT IT FOUND
A pilot with a spinal cord injury used a custom FES-bike to cover the required distance in the 2024 Cybathlon.
Personalizing stimulation angles nearly doubled his time to fatigue compared to standard settings, allowing him to secure third place.
Key findings
01Personalizing the muscle stimulation angles based on force data nearly doubled the time the pilot could maintain the target cadence before the system reached maximum power, compared to using standard empirical ranges.
02The pilot successfully completed the Cybathlon final, covering the 1960-meter target distance in 7 minutes and 34 seconds to secure third place.
03Heart rate was not a reliable indicator of effort for the pilot due to autonomic dysfunction associated with spinal cord injury, so training intensity was instead monitored using linear velocity and distance.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This is a single-pilot case report (Pilot 2 withdrew), so the results cannot be generalized to the broader population of people with spinal cord injuries. The device evolved over the study period, particularly regarding the power measurement pedals, which prevented consistent data collection across all training sessions. The pilot did not adhere strictly to the planned number of sessions due to availability, though he completed the vast majority. The study was conducted in a competitive, highly motivated context with intensive support, which may not reflect the feasibility or outcomes in a standard clinical or home setting.
Declared interests
The work was funded by the Cariplo Foundation, Lombardy Region (ActivE3 project), and INAIL (FESleg project). No commercial conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that standard FES cycling protocols are sufficient for maximizing performance or endurance. This pilot's success relied heavily on a custom device and a personalized calibration of stimulation angles that doubled his time to fatigue. Without this specific tuning, the benefits observed here may not be replicable.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →