The effects of local calf vibration on balance, blood flow, and nerve conductivity in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy: a pilot study

ABSTRACT

Objectives

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of local calf vibration on balance, blood flow, and nerve conductivity in patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN).

Methods

An open-label controlled trial was designed. Patients with confirmed diagnoses of type 2 diabetes and DPN were enrolled in the study and underwent ten sessions of local calf vibration therapy for the dominant leg. The other leg was considered the control. Balance evaluation, nerve conduction studies, and color Doppler ultrasound were performed before and after the treatment course. The Wilcoxon signed rank test and the Mann–Whitney test were used to evaluate the differences between the test results before and after the intervention and between the intervention and control legs.

Results

Seventeen patients with a mean age of 60.3 ± 5.6 years (11 males) participated in the study. Mean Brief BESTest total scores were significantly improved (14.06 vs. 17.35; P = .01, Cohen’s d = 0.743). There were no significant differences between the treated and control legs regarding the nerve conduction and color Doppler ultrasound parameters before and after the intervention (P ≥ .054). Changes in the parameters were also not significantly different between legs (P ≥ .078), except for common peroneal nerve conduction velocity, for which there was a higher increase in its value in the treated legs compared to the control legs (4.17 vs. 0.9, P = .002).

Conclusion

Local calf vibration may positively affect balance and lower extremities nerve conduction in patients with DPN, and the findings of this study can be a basis for studies evaluating the efficacy of local calf vibration for treating DPN.

KEYWORDS:

• Balance
• blood flow
• diabetes
• peripheral neuropathy
• vibration therapy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Tehran University of Medical Sciences and Health Services [33368].