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Positioning Technique for Abdominal Strengthening: Suggestion from the Field

Mr. Figura is Senior Physical Therapist, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, North Central Bronx Hospital, Bronx, NY 10467 (USA).

This excerpt was created in the absence of an abstract.

The purpose of this article is to describe a positioning technique that allows patients with spinal cord injuries to strengthen the abdominal musculature that has retained its innervation and, thereby, improve sitting balance and trunk control. Patients with other disabilities may also benefit from this technique.

Strengthening abdominal muscles and improving sitting balance make all transfers safer and permit a range of activities that require good static and dynamic sitting balance. The usual method, beginning from the supine position, requires more strength than the severely involved patient has and, therefore, is utterly frustrating. By eliminating the most difficult first 60 degrees of the movement, we are not only providing the patient with the feeling of accomplishing the task but also with a method of increasing his strength in small, manageable amounts as the wedge is repositioned downward.

My positioning technique uses standard clinic equipment in an unusual way....

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