2.2. Design and Instruments
In the current study, to examine the effects of treadmill training with FES, we proposed a longitudinal, randomized, crossover trial, including two treadmill sequences of training, which differed in the order of FES use between the groups. The sequence of training was composed of six sessions, twice a week, with a frequency of 30 min, and a total of 12 sessions. For this, PwS were distributed into two groups: Group A-B started the sequence of training with treadmill with the use of FES (TT-FES) and in the middle of the training they changed to treadmill without stimulation (TT), while Group B-A started with only TT and in the middle of the training they changed to TT-FES. Functional tests were performed to evaluate both groups before starting the sequence of training (Moment 1), after six sessions of the first sequence (Moment 2), and after six sessions of the second sequence of training (Moment 3) (The time required to perform the 10 Meter Walk Test (10MWT) was used to determine the initial velocity/intensity of the treadmill for the training (40% of result was selected for programming the velocity of training until reaching the training heart rate). Moreover, to ensure safety for participants during training, we designated a maximum limit (submaximal heart rate) for each participant.For the protocol with FES, the commercially available WalkAideBefore and after performing the sessions, participants remained seated for analysis of the cardiorespiratory parameters (blood pressure, oxygen saturation, heart and respiratory rates). The heart rate and Modified Borg Scale were monitored constantly during training.