Tele-Exercise to Promote Empowered Movement in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury

Summary

To achieve our specific aims and hypotheses we will conduct a parallel group mixed methods randomized control trial comparing participation in the TEEMS program with exercise via asynchronous video library equivalent (control). The use of mixed methods will allow for the integration of quantitative findings with the qualitative, lived perspective of participants to provide a comprehensive analysis of the tele-exercise program outcomes. All aspects of the study from recruitment, screening, data collection, tele-exercise delivery and team meetings will be virtual to promote access and inclusion by removing barriers and promoting engagement. This study will compare our live group TEEMS program with individual pre-recorded exercise videos. We created TEEMS with the intention of maximizing exercise independence for participants, which decreases need for caregivers during physical activity. The design and participation in TEEMS is meant to increase personal factors that facilitate participation in exercise. These personal factors include confidence and positive associations with exercise. When these personal factors are targeted, individuals with SCI are more likely to participate in physical activity, which supports overall health and QoL.

Conditions

• Spinal Cord Injury

Interventions

OTHER

Synchronous Group exercise

Participants will participate in the TEEMS biweekly for 8 weeks (synchronous intervention). The synchronous group will attend sessions 2 times per week, with all sessions recorded. The sessions will be 60-minutes total, including 45-minutes of physical activity. Recorded sessions will be made available for participants to use on their own at the end of each week, building a video of 16 videos. The program will be taught by a rehabilitation clinician with expertise in SCI and adapted exercise while our co-instructor will offer peer guidance and demonstrate lived translation of movement with an SCI. Class will take place over a web-based platform (such as Zoom).TEEMS instructors also orient participants to the Borg Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE, 6-20 scale) to be used as an self-exertion check throughout class and to be recorded in a provided logbook. RPE is used as a self-assessment of moderate-vigorous intensity exercise.

OTHER

Asynchronous exercise (Control)

Participants will participate in the TEEMS biweekly for 8 weeks (asynchronous video library). The asynchronous, control group will be provided with 2 recorded videos weekly that align with the synchronous group sessions, building a 16 video library as well. The sessions will be 60-minutes total, including 45-minutes of physical activity. The program will be taught by a rehabilitation clinician with expertise in SCI and adapted exercise while our co-instructor will offer peer guidance and demonstrate lived translation of movement with an SCI. Class will take place over a web-based platform (such as Zoom).TEEMS instructors also orient participants to the Borg Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE, 6-20 scale) to be used as an self-exertion check throughout class and to be recorded in a provided logbook. RPE is used as a self-assessment of moderate-vigorous intensity exercise.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• United States Department of Defense

  collaborator FED

• Drexel University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Margaret Finley, PT, PhD · Drexel University

• Laura Baehr, PT, DPT, PhD · Drexel University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

75 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-05-01

Primary Completion

2029-01-31

Completion

2029-08-31

Countries

• United States