2018, Volume 24, Issue 3

INITIAL DEPRESSION AND NORMALIZATION OF HIGHER EXTREMITY OXYGENATION IN AN AUTISTIC GIRL DUE TO KINESITHERAPY USING AN ADAPTED HIGH ALTITUDE PROTECTION SUIT: A CASE STUDY

Maciej ABAKUMOW¹, Stefan P. GAŹDZIŃSKI², Krzysztof KOWALCZUK³
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¹Neures Poland
²Creative Neuroscience Lab – CNS Lab, Military Institute of Aviation Medicine
³Department of Simulator Studies and Aeromedical Training, Military Institute of Aviation Medicine


Autor korenspondencyjny: Maciej ABAKUMOW; Neures Poland ; email: rehabilitacja@neures.pl

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Streszczenie

Introduction: Autism spectrum disorder is often accompanied by motor impairments that can be treated with kinesitherapy. At Neures Poland, we use high-altitude compensation suits (R-WUK) to help stabilize patients. Here, we report on a case of very low oxygenation of peripheral tissue (hands) in a fifteen-year-old girl (52 kg, 165 cm) with a diagnosis of autism. That oxygenation normalized during kinesiotherapy utilizing the R-WUK over the period of two months.

Methods: Before the commencement of therapeutic sessions, the patient’s vital signs and tissue oxygen saturation (SpO₂) in upper extremities were measured. These measurements were repeated before and following the rest of the therapeutic sessions.

Results: Before the sessions, SpO₂ was 74%, while the other measures were in the normal range. Over the first month of therapy, SpO₂ was low, but after sessions, it was higher, except for the first session in the normal range. SpO₂ remained normal before and after the sessions following a seven-week break in the therapy.

Conclusions: R-WUK caused an equalization of saturation levels at the distal level in the upper limbs. Understanding the mechanisms requires further research.

Słowa kluczowe

high altitude protection suit, psychiatric disorder, autism spectrum disorder, physiology