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Armijo, FranciscoAuthor

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September 16, 2020
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Efficacy of aquatic therapy for multiple sclerosis: a systematic review

Publicated to:European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 53 (6): 944-952 - 2017-01-01 53(6), DOI: 10.23736/S1973-9087.17.04570-1

Authors: Corvillo, Iluminada; Varela, Enrique; Armijo, Francisco; Alvarez-Badillo, Antonio; Armijo, Onica; Maraver, Francisco;

Affiliations

UCM, Fac Med, Dept Phys & Rehabil Med, Madrid 28040, Spain - Author

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory, progressive, disabling autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system. Symptoms and signs of MS vary widely and patients may lose their ability to walk. To date the benefits of aquatic therapy often used for rehabilitation in MS patients have not been reviewed. The aim of this study was to systematically review the current state of aquatic treatment for persons with MS (hydrotherapy, aquatic therapy, aquatic exercises, spa therapy) and to evaluate the scientific evidence supporting the benefits of this therapeutic option. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: The databases PubMed, Scopus, WoS and PEDro were searched to identify relevant reports published from January 1, 2011 to April 30, 2016. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: Of 306 articles identified, only 10 fulfilled the inclusion criteria: 5 randomized controlled, 2 simple randomized quasi-experimental, 1 semi-experimental, 1 blind controlled pilot and 1 pilot. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence that aquatic treatment improves quality of life in affected patients was very good in two studies, good in four, fair in two and weak in two.

Keywords

EnduranceExerciseExercise therapyFatigueFitnessHydrotherapyIndividualsMetaanalysisMultiple sclerosisPain managementProgramQuality-of-lifeRehabilitation

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2017, it was in position 16/65, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Rehabilitation.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 1.01. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 14, 2024)

This information is reinforced by other indicators of the same type, which, although dynamic over time and dependent on the set of average global citations at the time of their calculation, consistently position the work at some point among the top 50% most cited in its field:

  • Weighted Average of Normalized Impact by the Scopus agency: 1.08 (source consulted: FECYT Feb 2024)
  • Field Citation Ratio (FCR) from Dimensions: 7.08 (source consulted: Dimensions Jul 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2025-07-06, the following number of citations:

  • WoS: 14
  • Scopus: 21

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-07-06:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 292.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 292 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 10.
  • The number of mentions on Wikipedia: 2 (Altmetric).
  • The number of mentions in news outlets: 1 (Altmetric).