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A SBI 2023 BEDREST STUDY

The study focused on the deterioration of neuromuscular and metabolic 
health during prolonged physical inactivity in both young and older men, as 
well as the subsequent restoration of health. Various models were employed 
to study the effects of physical inactivity, with bedrest (BR) being the gold 
standard. This model, which few institutions have managed to develop in a 
complex hospital setting, is also used as a ground-based simulation to study the 
consequences of space flight. Thus, the study design holds significant appeal 
for numerous research groups and stakeholders. BR is not only used to evalu-
ate the effects of physical inactivity but also to examine the efficacy of various 
methods, including various countermeasures, interventions and rehabilitation 
measures, in addressing muscle atrophy and inactivity-induced dysfunction.

A Bed Rest Centre of Science and Research Centre Koper is being led by 
the Institute for Kinesiology Research. Since 2006 we have organized 6 BR 
studies, with 10 cohorts, including 97 participants, being in bed between 10 to 
35 days. We were one of the first in the world to conduct the Bedrest Study in 
2012 on a balanced sample of two groups of elderly subjects to investigate the 
effects of an intervention (nutrition and cognitive ability) on reducing partici-
pants’ functional decline in participants. The latest study, in 2023, was of great 
relevance as it was one of the rarest studies that also included aged participants 
(> 65 years of age) to be compared with younger counterparts. Specifically, the 
study included 3 groups:
Group Y: Nine young males (18–35 years) that underwent 21-day BR, without 

interventions, followed by 21-day recovery.
Group E: Ten older males (65–75 years) that underwent 10-day BR, without 

interventions, followed by 21-day recovery.
Group Ex: Ten older males (65–75 years) that underwent 10-day BR, with 3 

interventions, followed by 21-day recovery. For interventions, participants: 
(1) performed 2-month prehabilitation to elevate their fitness levels before 
the BR; (ii) performed virtual reality-driven mental training to prevent de-
cline in motor control during the BR; and (iii) were given extra proteins and 
amino acids to maintain their metabolism during the BR.
A study was conducted following ethical approval from the National Medical 

Ethics Committee of the Republic of Slovenia (No. 0120-123/2023/9, issued on 
21 June 2023). The first 2 participants joined the study on 21 August 2023, and 
the last 2 participants completed the study on 25 October 2023. As in our previ-
ous studies, all participants successfully completed all examinations.



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ANNALES KINESIOLOGIAE • 15 • 2024 • 1

A total of 43 researchers from 9 organizations (various European scientific, 
research and health institutions) participated in the study. On 29 March 2023, 
we organized a scientific meeting where we presented the main findings of the 
study, which will be published in scientific journals.

The project was co-financed from:
ARIS J5-4593 Physical inactivity induced neuromuscular impairment: com-

parison of younger and older adults.
INTERREG SLO-ITA X-Brain.net – Network per la cooperazione transfront-

aliera finalizzata alla riabilitazione del paziente post-ictus con tecnologie 
innovative.

PRIN NeuAge – Neuromuscular Aging: Mechanisms and functional impli- 
cations.

PRIN InactivAge – Inactivity induced neuromuscular impairment through dif-
ferent ages: from children, to young and middle age adults.

PRIN ReActiveAge – The countermeasures to the neuromuscular impairments 
induced by inactivity and disuse across different ages.

Boštjan Šimunič, Rado Pišot



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ŠTUDIJA BEDREST SBI 2023

Študija je bila osredinjena na poslabšanje živčno-mišičnega in presnovnega 
zdravja med dolgotrajno gibalno neaktivnostjo pri mladih in starejših moških 
in na poznejše izboljšanje zdravja. Za proučevanje učinkov gibalne neaktivno-
sti so bili uporabljeni različni modeli, pri čemer je ležanje v postelji (BR) zlati 
standard. Ta model, ki ga je v kompleksnem bolnišničnem okolju uspelo razviti 
le malo institucijam, se uporablja tudi kot zemeljski model za proučevanje posle-
dic vesoljskega poleta, številne ugotovitve pa lahko prenašamo tudi na področja 
razumevanja mehanizmov propadanja pri zasedeni, gibalno neaktivni populaciji 
ter procesov staranja. Zato je zasnova študije zelo privlačna za številne razisko-
valne skupine in udeležence. BR se ne uporablja le za nadzorovano ocenjevanje 
učinkov gibalne neaktivnosti, temveč tudi za proučevanje učinkovitosti različnih 
intervencij, vključno s protiukrepi in rehabilitacijo, za odpravljanje strukturnega 
in funkcionalnega propada ter disfunkcije, ki jo povzroča neaktivnost.

BED REST Center Znanstveno-raziskovalnega središča Koper vodi Inštitut 
za kineziološke raziskave. Od leta 2006 smo organizirali šest študij BR, v kate-
rih je sodelovalo 10 kohort in 97 udeležencev, ki so bili v postelji od 10 do 35 
dni. Bili smo prvi v svetovnem merilu, ki smo leta 2012 izvedli študijo na urav-
noteženem vzorcu dveh skupin starejših subjektov z namenom preučevanja 
vpliva intervencije - v tem primeru kognitivnega treninga, na zmanjšanje funk-
cionalnega propada. Zadnja študija, izvedena leta 2023, je bila zelo pomembna, 
saj je bila ena redkih, ki je vključevala tudi starejše udeležence (starejše od 65 
let), da bi jih primerjali z mlajšimi. Študija je vključevala tri skupine:
Skupina Y: devet mladih moških (18–35 let), ki so prestali 21-dnevni BR brez 

intervencij, čemur je sledilo 21-dnevno okrevanje.
Skupina E: deset starejših moških (65–75 let), ki so prestali 10-dnevni BR brez 

intervencij, čemur je sledilo 21-dnevno okrevanje.
Skupina Ex: deset starejših moških (65–75 let), ki so prestali 10-dnevni BR s 

tremi intervencijami, čemur je sledilo 21-dnevno okrevanje. Med interven-
cijami so preiskovanci: 1. izvajali 2-mesečno predpripravo za izboljšanje 
svoje telesne pripravljenosti pred BR; 2. izvajali mentalni trening z uporabo 
virtualne resničnosti za preprečevanje upada motorične kontrole med BR; 
ter 3. dobivali dodatne beljakovine in aminokisline za vzdrževanje presnove 
med BR.
Študija je bila izvedena po etični odobritvi, ki jo je 21. junija 2023 izdala 

Komisija Republike Slovenije za medicinsko etiko (št. 0120-123/2023/9). Prva 
preiskovanca sta se študiji pridružila 21. avgusta 2023, zadnja pa sta jo končala 



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ANNALES KINESIOLOGIAE • 15 • 2024 • 1

25. oktobra 2023. Kot pri naših prejšnjih študijah so vsi preiskovanci uspešno 
opravili vse preglede.

V študiji je sodelovalo skupno 43 raziskovalcev iz devetih organizacij (raz-
ličnih evropskih znanstvenoraziskovalnih in zdravstvenih inštitucij). 29. marca 
2023 smo organizirali znanstveno srečanje, na katerem smo predstavili glavne 
ugotovitve študije, ki bodo objavljene v znanstvenih revijah.

Projekt je bil sofinanciran iz:
ARIS J5-4593 Upad živčno-mišičnega sistema po gibalni neaktivnosti: primer-

java mlajših in starejših odraslih,
INTERREG SLO-ITA X-Brain.net – Mreža čezmejnega sodelovanja rehabili-

tacije bolnikov po možganski kapi z uporabo inovativnih tehnologij,
PRIN NeuAge – Neuromuscular Aging: Mechanisms and functional impli- 

cations,
PRIN InactivAge – Inactivity induced neuromuscular impairment through dif-

ferent ages: from children, to young and middle age adults,
PRIN ReActiveAge – The countermeasures to the neuromuscular impairments 

induced by inactivity and disuse across different ages.

Boštjan Šimunič, Rado Pišot


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