The experience of one woman with multiple sclerosis has helped initiate a pilot study about the effectiveness of vibration training in improving fitness and wellbeing in those with the chronic disease.

The eight week study, which has yielded promising results, was run with the support of Borders Sport and Leisure Trust (BSLT), Power Plate International and the MS Society. It identified that vibration training has the potential to improve strength, mobility, flexibility and co-ordination of people with MS.

Sandra Hay, a 54 year old with MS, had been using Borders Sport and Leisure Trust's gym facilities for 14 months, but found that the side effects of her illness were affecting her confidence in exercising independently.

David Johnston, a trainer at BSLT's Tweedbank Sports Centre suggested she try using the Power Plate(r) machine.

"When Sandra started training with us, I wanted to ensure that her programme would help to improve her condition. Power Plate sent me research papers showing the positive effects that Power Plate has had for other people with MS, which helped me develop a training routine for Sandra," says David.

Sandra used the Power Plate machine for a year, and was so pleased with the results that she contacted the MS Society, to share her success story in the hope that others could also benefit.

Emily McGowan, marketing manager for BSLT, says the Trust supported the study as part of their commitment to helping to remove barriers to exercise for members of their community.

"We are always looking for ways to encourage more people to become more active. The MS pilot study was one way of demonstrating how this could be achieved," she says.

Multiple sclerosis (or MS) is a chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system (CNS), which is made up of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as paralysis or loss of vision.

Ten people with MS participated in the eight week study. They were assessed at the start of the trial, to provide a baseline to measure the results against. The study investigated how this specific exercise program on the Power Plate machine could improve participants' muscle power, strength and coordination, mobility and functional mobility, and functional reach. It also used the Multiple Sclerosis impact scale (MSIS-29) and pain effects scale (PES), to help assess the program's effect on quality of life.

The results were very promising, with eight of the 10 participants progressing to a point where they could both increase the intensity of vibration and perform exercises for longer. Only 20% of participants could perform all the assessment tests at the start of the trial but 80% completed all the final assessment tests.

Arm and leg power (muscle strength) was found to improve, or remain the same in seven participants, while nine participants improved in the strength and coordination tests and six participants improved in the mobility tests.
Nine participants improved their MSIS-29 score, and six participants improved, or stayed the same, in the PES for pain.

These promising results demonstrate that vibration training has the potential to help improve strength, mobility, flexibility and co-ordination for people with MS.