Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2026 Jul 21. doi: 10.1097/PHM.0000000000003083. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to systematically evaluate and summarize the evidence related to NMES-assisted rehabilitation of patients with ankle injuries.
DESIGN: A systematic search of eight Chinese and English databases was conducted to identify randomized controlled trials investigating NMES-assisted rehabilitation for ankle injuries. Studies were screened and relevant information extracted from included publications. Meta-analysis was performed using statistical software RevMan 5.3 and STATA 17.0.
RESULTS: A total of 7010 articles were retrieved from the literature, and 23 studies were finally included. Meta-analysis showed that the NMES group had the best results in terms of CAIT, VAS, AOFOS, clinical efficacy, area of motion ellipse, valgus relative peak moment value, dorsiflexion relative peak moment value, plantarflexion relative peak moment value, step speed, step length, single-support phase and double-support phase; for the total stability index, the improvement was not significantly different from that of the control group. The meta-analysis results revealed no significant evidence of publication bias.
CONCLUSION: The results of this review suggest that NMES may have some potential role in assisting rehabilitation of ankle injuries, and that a longer course of NMES may have better efficacy.
PMID:42475641 | DOI:10.1097/PHM.0000000000003083
