Is breathing, speech and blood pressure improved with the use of an abdominal binder in people who have suffered an acute spinal cord injury?

The objective was to investigate the effect of an elasticated abdominal binder on respiratory, voice, and blood pressure outcomes for people with a motor complete acute tetraplegia during the first year after injury using a randomized crossover study design. Fourteen participants consented to take part allowing measurements of respiratory, voice and blood pressure to be collected with and without the abdominal binder. The study found that an individually fitted abdominal binder significantly improved breathing volume, force and voicing time.