The efficacy of anaerobic training on multiple sclerosis symptoms management

Purpose: the aim of this study was to investigated the improvement of physical health status and reduce the chronic fatigue associated with that pathology in people with multiple sclerosis following lactacid anaerobic training protocol. Methods: 8 subjects (age: 34,88 ± 4,45) affected by multiple sclerosis (EDSS < 3.5) were involved in our study. An anaerobic lactacid training was administered for 12 weeks, 2 times a week, an hour and a half for each session. At the beginning (T0), at the end of the study (T1) and after 9 months from the end of the study (Follow-up, FU) physical parameters (body compositions analysis; strength, balance and reaction tests; Visual Analog Fatigue Scale, VAFS) and hematochemicals parameters (lactate and neurotrophins BDNF and DHEA-S) were tested. Results: Body compositions analysis showed an increase in total body water and in basal metabolic rate (p<0.05). Furthermore, an improving trend was detected on the percentages of lean mass and a tendency to decrease was detected on the percentages fat mass (p = 0.05). BDNF levels significant increase from T0 to T1 as well as DHEA-S levels (p<0.05) but the latter significant decrease from T0 and FU (p<0.05) and from T1 and FU (p<0.01). About strength, balance and reaction tests no significant differences was found after lactacid anaerobic training protocol; moreover Magnetic Resonance Imaging and EDSS evaluation show no progression of disease for all the subjects. Furthermore, baseline lactate levels showed a decrease after the protocol training (p<0.05) which could be best re-used as energy substrate. VAFS showed statistically significant decrease in fatigue level between T0 and T1 (p<0.01). Conclusions: The results obtained have confirmed that lactacid exercise can influence physical health. Our protocol may increase brain-derived neurotrophic factors and DEHA-S concentrations and their functions that are related to decrease in fatigue level. It’s known that fatigue symptom is associated with low levels of DHEA-S in subjects with multiple sclerosis. Lactacid physical exercise appear to act with synergic positive effects on inflammation, neural plasticity, and neuroprotection, by reducing lactate basal level and it can reduce MS symptoms progression.