Osteoporosis is a very much frequent metabolic disease among spine cord injuried patients. Their rehabilitation can be jeopardized by this disease, due to the possibility of fractures of the osteoporotic bones. Osteoporosis in spine injuried patients is related to the disuse caused by palsy, which leads to less mechanic stress over the bones, and as a consequence, less bone formation stimulation, with a not proportional bone absorption, which makes bone fragile. Thus, alternative non pharmacological treatments based on bone biomechanics principles are under study, which include an analysis of weight bearing caused by neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) and low intensity ultra sound. This article is proposed to explain the importance of mechanic stimulation over the bones and the consequences of its absence, with an emphasis on spine cord injuried patients, and to discuss alternative treatments already studied.
Osteoporosis; Spine Cord Injuried Patients; Bone Biomechanics; NMES; Ultrasound
