The Effect of Resistance Exercise on Motor Control in Woman with Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common disabling disease in young adults, which occurs due to inflammatory demyelinating process in the central nervous system that are manifests with different clinical signs. The aim of this study was to investisate the effect of resistance exercises on the motor function and balance in women with multiple sclerosis. This study is a quasi-experimental study of practical purpose. The statistical community consisted of 20 women with MS with the mean age of 30.9±6.95 at low and intermediate levels of disease, EDSS≤4. The patients were randomly assigned into two groups (resistance training and control, 10 patients each). The training period was 8 weeks, 2 sessions per week, and each session consisted of 3 phases: warm-up, main workout, cool down. Timed up and go (TUG) test was used to measure motor function, and functional reach (FR) test was used to measure the balance of the two groups before and after training. Data were analyzed by Kolmogorov-Smirnov, dependent t-, and independent t- tests. In this study, there was a significant difference between the scores of motor function and balance in patients with MS, before and after the resistance training period (p<0/05). There was no significant difference between resistance and control groups (p<0/05). According to the results of this study, resistance training can improve motor function and balance in individuals with MS. Therefore, these exercises could be used as a complementary therapy along with medicinal treatment for MS patients.