Hydrotherapeutic Approach in Muscular Strengthening for Steinert’s Myotonic Dystrophy Patients – bibliographic revision

Abstract

The Steinert’s Myotonic Dystrophy is a progressive neuromuscular disease which represent the most frequent muscular dystrophy in adults, transmitted by dominant autossomic inheritance, with alteration at the long arm of chromosome-19. On the disease development, the progressive muscular weakness is present, causing great debility on the daily activities performance. Regarding the treatment, the physiotherapy shows to be useful mainly regarding the maintenance and/or gain of muscular force. This work can be relieved when it is performed at therapeutic swimming pool, once the physical water properties lead to great physiological and therapeutic benefits. The hydrotherapeutic program for patients with Steinert’s Myotonic Dystrophy was directed to the maintenance and/or increase of muscular force, by means of a bibliographic revision on the scientific studies about the subject. The studies on muscular strengthening in Steinert’s disease have shown better therapeutic results in patients with loss of muscular force from light to moderate, and with moderate endurance exercises, showing benefits when performed in water environment, by its physiological and therapeutic effects, provided by water. This study shows that the muscular strengthening exercises based on one detailed evaluation are essential to the DNM patients quality of life maintenance. The hydrotherapy represents one way of treatment appropriated to the muscular force training, offering greater movement freedom to these patients.