Webinar Invitation
Could Electrical Stimulation Improve the Recovery of People with Covid-19 Following a Prolonged ICU Stay?
Via our partners at Axelgaard Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Digitimer would like to draw your attention to an upcoming webinar related to the potential benefits of electrical stimulation in patients who have been hospitalised and in long term intensive care as a result of Covid-19. This webinar is sponsored by the International Functional Electrical Stimulation Society (IFESS) and speakers include Dr. Gad Alon, PT, PhD, an Emeritus Associate Professor in the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science. Dr Alon’s research and teaching experience makes him an expert in the field of clinical electrotherapy. His presentation will scrutinise the evidence and current guidelines for the proposed benefits of using Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) with intensive care patients and make recommendations for using NMES with COVID-19 patients.
The rehabilitation of COVID-19 (C-19) patients after prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) treatment is complex and challenging with patients being afflicted with a myriad of long-term recurring multi-organ impairments impacting on respiratory, cardiac, neurological, bowel and skeletal muscle dysfunction. Skeletal muscle dysfunction of respiratory and limb muscles commonly referred to as ICU acquired weakness (ICUAW) occurs in around 40% of general patients admitted to the ICU. The impact on mobility and engagement in activities of daily living and return to daily life is severely impaired. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) is a technique in which small electrical impulses are applied to skeletal muscle to cause a contraction where it is difficult or impossible for people to initiate themselves. NMES is associated with benefits including improved muscle strength and function, improved bone density, improved blood flow and reduced oedema. The presentation will examine the evidence and current guidelines for the proposed benefits of using NMES with ICU patients and make practical clinical recommendations for using NMES with C-19 patients as well as suggestions for further research.
In order to register for this webinar on Tuesday, 26 Jan 2021 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM (GMT+0), please use the link on the IFESS website.
Digitimer is an authorised European distributor for the Axelgaard range of NMES electrodes and Axelgaard have published some information relevant to the use of NMES in Covid-19 patients, which you can download here. The Digitimer website includes information relating to the most popular Axelgaard products we supply, but if you you have any questions relating the other electrodes or our own range of electrical stimulators for human use in NMES applications, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.
