Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation
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Arch Phys Med Rehabil · Dec 2005
Comparative StudyPrehabilitation and rehabilitation for attenuating hindlimb unweighting effects on skeletal muscle and gait in adult and old rats.
To compare the effectiveness of no exercise with prehabilitation (exercise before hindlimb unweighting [HLU]) versus rehabilitation (exercise given after HLU) on gait function and skeletal muscle mass and force. ⋯ Exercise, particularly rehabilitation, was more effective for old than young rats. Prehabilitation and rehabilitation diminished some of the detrimental effects of HLU on skeletal muscle mass and force and gait function in old rats.