The effects of whole body vibration on muscle strength and functional mobility in persons with multiple sclerosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: This review aimed to confirm the effects of the whole body vibration (WBV) on muscle performance and functional mobility in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients.

Methods: A systematic literature search was performed in databases of Pubmed, Web of Science, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library from 1990 to 2015. The risk of bias in the selected studies was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration's Tool. Summary statistics was calculated using the Review Manager 5.2 software.

Results: Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 7 trials including 201 subjects were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that the WBV significantly improved the knee extensor strength (WMD=13.74, 95% CI 4.56 to 22.93, P=0.003). However, there were no significant differences between WBV and control groups on knee flexor strength (95% CI -26.22 to 41.83, P=0.65), Timed Up and Go test (TUG, WMD=0.31, 95% CI: -0.91 to 3.42, P=0.62) and walking speed (SMD=0.42, 95% CI: -0.78 to 1.62, P=0.49).

Conclusions: These results indicate that the WBV may improve the knee extension muscle strength. However, the WBV does not show a meaningful improvement of functional mobility in MS patients.