Objective: To determine the effects of exergaming (EXE) on quality of life (QOL), motor, and clinical symptoms in multiple sclerosis (MS). We compared the effects of EXE, balance (BAL), cycling (CYC), proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF), and a standard care wait-listed control group on clinical and motor symptoms and quality of life (QOL) in people with MS (PwMS) and determined the effects of subsequent maintenance programs for 2 years in a hospital setting. Design: A randomized controlled trial, using before-after test design. Setting: University hospital setting. Participants: Of 82 outpatients with MS, 70 were randomized (N=70), and 68 completed the study. Interventions: The initial high-intensity and high-frequency interventions consisted of 25 one-hour sessions over 5 weeks. After the 5-week-long initial intervention, the 2-year-long maintenance programs followed, consisting of 3 sessions per week, each for 1 hour. Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome: Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale (MSIS-29). Secondary outcomes: Measures 5 aspects of health-related QOL (EuroQol 5-Dimension questionnaire), Beck Depression Inventory, 6-minute walk test (6MWT), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Tinetti Assessment Tool (TAT), and static BAL (center of pressure). Results: MSIS-29 improved most in EXE (11 points), BAL (6), and CYC (6) (all P<.05). QOL improved most in EXE (3 points), CYC, and BAL (2) (all P<.05). TAT and BBS improved significantly (P<.05) but similarly (P>.05) in EXE, BAL, and CYC. 6MWT improved most in EXE (57m), BAL (32m), and CYC (19m) (all P<.001). Standing sway did not change. Maintenance programs further increased the initial exercise-induced gains, robustly in EXE. Conclusions: A total of 25 sessions of EXE, BAL, CYC, and PNF, in this order, improved clinical and motor symptoms and QOL, and subsequent 2-year-long thrice weekly maintenance programs further slowed symptom worsening and improved QOL. EXE was the most and PNF was the least effective to improve clinical symptoms, motor function, and QOL in PwMS.

Students who participate in well-planned and structured physical education (PE) lessons engage in significantly higher levels of physical activity than children who do not. Heart rate monitoring a useful tool to help both students and teachers understand the efficiency of the physical activity. The purpose of this study was to analyze primary school children’s body compositions and heart rates when performing different types of physical activities (gymnastics, mixed activities, ball games, athletics, and games). The sample included 10-12-year-old primary school boys (N=46) and girls (N=63) from the university’s cooperating school. To estimate their body compositions, standard anthropometric techniques were used. Polar RS400 heart rate monitors were used to monitor the heart rate of each child during the main parts of different types of physical education lessons. There were no differences between the genders for the body composition or for the maximal heart rate values in the different PE content areas. The lowest heart rate was recorded during gymnastics (148 beat*min-1), and the highest values were detected during the game activities and athletics (164.60 and 163.83 beat*min-1. For the mixed activities and ball games, the heart rates ranged between 154.06 and 156.52 beat*min-1. Physical activities that result in higher heart rate values required a greater contribution and adaptation of the cardiovascular system. However, activities that elicit a lower heart rate likely focus more on skill learning and acquisition. This data can be used as a resource for physical education teachers when planning and structuring PE classes.