Low-Grade Inflammation and Spinal Cord Injury: Exercise as Therapy?

Mediators of Inflammation, 2013 · DOI: 10.1155/2013/971841 · Published: February 2, 2013

Spinal Cord Injury Genetics Rehabilitation

Simple Explanation

Spinal cord injuries can lead to lower sympathetic activity, which compromises the immune system and promotes low-grade inflammation. This inflammation, exacerbated by increased obesity in spinal cord injury patients, elevates the risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Exercise is proposed as a therapy to counteract these effects. It's hypothesized that exercise boosts the sympathetic system, increasing catecholamines, which enhance lipolysis and activate immune cells. This process reduces body fat and the production of inflammatory cytokines. This review explores the relationships between low-grade inflammation, spinal cord injury, and exercise. It discusses a novel mechanism where exercise may benefit people with spinal cord injury by increasing catecholamines and cytokines.

Study Duration

1974 to 2012

Participants

Not specified

Evidence Level

Review Article

Key Findings

1
Spinal cord injury is associated with increased serum concentrations of C-reactive protein, interleukin 6 (IL-6), and endothelin-1, suggesting a state of chronic inflammation independent of obesity.
2
Obesity, common in spinal cord injury patients, further contributes to low-grade chronic inflammation by increasing the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines from adipose tissue.
3
Exercise may counteract inflammation by increasing sympathetic activity, leading to increased catecholamines, enhanced lipolysis, and activation of immune cells.

Research Summary

Individuals with spinal cord lesions have a higher risk for obesity and, consequently, low-grade chronic inflammation due to the accumulation of visceral fat and the subsequent increased production of proinflammatory cytokines by adipose tissue. Acute exercise causes an intensity-dependent increase in sympathetic activity, leading to an increase in plasma catecholamines and a subsequent increase in IL-6 in the blood. Exercise could be an interesting nonpharmacological therapy to decrease chronic low-grade inflammation.

Practical Implications

Therapeutic Exercise

Exercise can be used as a non-pharmacological therapy to manage chronic low-grade inflammation in individuals with spinal cord injury.

Improved Quality of Life

By modulating the neuro-immuno-endocrine axis, exercise can act as a potential option to improve the quality of life in spinal cord injury patients.

Targeted Interventions

Understanding the relationship between exercise intensity, catecholamine release, and anti-inflammatory cytokine production can help design more effective exercise interventions.

Study Limitations

1
The review includes studies with varying experimental designs.
2
The specific exercise protocols and their effects on inflammatory markers in spinal cord injury patients require further investigation.
3
Further research is needed to determine the optimal exercise parameters (intensity, duration, type) for maximizing anti-inflammatory benefits in this population.

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