Objectives: To determine the impact of six months intervention covering nutritional adjustments and exercise program on body composition in spinal cord injury subjects. Metody: Twenty-seven spinal cord injury subjects with the lesion level T4 - T12 (10 females, 17 males) mean age 41.9 +- 10.3 years and initial BMI 27.02 +- 5.0 kg/m participated in the present study.
Body composition was measured using the multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis device BodystatQuadScan 4000. Statistical analysis was carried out in the statistical program IBM SPSS statistics 22.
Intervention lasting six months consisted of 2 weeks intensive program, followed by 5 months home based program and 2 weeks of intensive program. The initial assessment was made before the intervention and follow-up right after.
Results: Although a body mass decreased (p <0,001), body fat percentage and FM increased (p = 0.193). Furthermore, muscle mass (MM) (p = 0.002), total body water (TBW) (p = 0.002), intracellular fluid (ICW) (p = 0.016), and extracellular fluid (ECW) (p = 0.001) decreased.
Decreasing of ECW / TBW (p <0,001) indicates reduction of edema. Conclusion: In general it wasn't proved a change of eating habits and exercise intervention leads to body weight reduction and lowers obesity-related health risks in long horizon based on observed sample.
Apparently regular medical check in a month frequency can't assure reaching positive results regarding to measures set up. Despite the altered body mass, other body mass values were not significantly lowered.