-
Acta Medica Okayama Jun 2024There have been few investigations into the effectiveness of thoracic spine exercises for improving thoracic range of motion (ROM) in any plane. This study assessed the... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
There have been few investigations into the effectiveness of thoracic spine exercises for improving thoracic range of motion (ROM) in any plane. This study assessed the effectiveness of two thoracic spine exercises: one in the quadruped position and one in the thoracic standing position. We determined how these exercises affect thoracic spine mobility ROM over a 2-week intervention period. Thirty-nine healthy participants were enrolled and assigned to a Quadruped Thoracic Rotation group (n=17 participants: 9 females and 8 males) or Flamenco Thoracic Spine Rotation group (n=22: 14 females and 8 males). All participants were administered a KOJI AWARENESSTM screening test, and the initial thoracic spine ROM before intervention exercise was measured in a laboratory setting. Quadruped Thoracic Rotation was performed as the quadruped exercise and Flamenco Thoracic Spine Rotation as the standing exercise. The KOJI AWARENESSTM thoracic spine test and ROM were evaluated on the day after the first exercise session and again after the program. Despite their different approaches to thoracic mobility, the quadruped exercise and standing exercise achieved equivalent improvement in thoracic ROM after 2 weeks. Practitioners have a range of exercise options for enhancing thoracic mobility based on their environmental or task-specific needs.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Range of Motion, Articular; Adult; Thoracic Vertebrae; Rotation; Young Adult; Exercise Therapy
PubMed: 38902213
DOI: 10.18926/AMO/67200 -
Journal of Clinical Medicine Jun 2024Degenerative joint disease is a dynamic pathological process characterised by a destabilisation of the degradation and synthesis processes of articular cartilage and...
Degenerative joint disease is a dynamic pathological process characterised by a destabilisation of the degradation and synthesis processes of articular cartilage and subchondral bone layer. Studies suggest that individuals with gonarthrosis experience deficits in proprioception, in addition to changes within their joints, which directly affects their ability to maintain posture and increases their risk of falling. The aim of this study was to assess the functional status of patients with gonarthrosis through a posturographic examination conducted on a stabilometric platform (force plate) and a functional clinical examination. Participants were divided into two groups-a control group ( = 125) and a study group ( = 125). During the qualification process, subjective and objective examinations were conducted, including a functional assessment by means of such tests as the "Up and Go" Test, Functional Reach Test, Five Time Sit to Stand Test, and the Step Test. Subsequently, an assessment was conducted on the force plate by means of a posturographic test-the Romberg test performed with open and closed eyes in a standing position-and balance was evaluated using the Berg Balance Scale. The obtained data were analysed with the use of the IBM SPSS Statistics software version 27.0, by means of the Mann-Whitney test, and correlations were determined by means of Spearman's test. A significance level of = 0.05 was adopted. Statistically significant differences were observed among the assessed groups as a result of both functional and posturographic examinations, along with positive correlations for disease duration, age, and BMI index. Patients with gonarthrosis exhibited disturbances in balance, functionality, and posture compared to healthy individuals in the control group.
PubMed: 38893009
DOI: 10.3390/jcm13113298 -
Journal of Clinical Medicine May 2024Prolonged sitting is a potential risk factor for musculoskeletal disorders in office workers. This study aims to evaluate the effect of active breaks on reducing muscle...
Prolonged sitting is a potential risk factor for musculoskeletal disorders in office workers. This study aims to evaluate the effect of active breaks on reducing muscle overload in subjects who sit for long periods using infrared thermography (IRT). A sample of 57 office workers participated in this study and were divided into two groups: active breaks (ABs) and no active breaks (NABs). The NAB group sat continuously for 90 min without standing up, while the AB group performed stretching and mobility exercises every 30 min. IRT measurements were taken every 30 min before the active breaks. The results highlight that the skin temperature of the back increased significantly in both groups after 30 min of sitting; however, in the subsequent measurements, the AB group showed a decrease in temperature, while the NAB group maintained a high temperature. Exercise and time point of measurement all reported -values < 0.001; there were no statistically significant differences between the Δ of the NAB and AB groups, while the Δ and Δ of the NAB and AB groups showed statistically significant differences for all back regions. The clinical relevance of this study confirms the negative effects of prolonged sitting on the health of the back, demonstrating that active breaks can reduce back strain, emphasizing the need for workplace interventions. In addition, IRT represents a non-invasive method to assess back muscle overload and monitor the effectiveness of interventions in all categories of workers who maintain a prolonged sitting position. The main limitation of this study is the absence of a questionnaire for the assessment of back pain, which does not allow a direct correlation between temperature changes and back pain outcomes.
PubMed: 38892891
DOI: 10.3390/jcm13113178 -
Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) May 2024The purpose of the present cross-sectional study was to examine the relationship between heart rate variability (HRV) and the range of cervical motion, disability, pain...
The Relationship between Heart Rate Variability, Pain Intensity, Pain Catastrophizing, Disability, Quality of Life and Range of Cervical Motion in Patients with Chronic Non-Specific Neck Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study.
The purpose of the present cross-sectional study was to examine the relationship between heart rate variability (HRV) and the range of cervical motion, disability, pain intensity, pain catastrophizing, and quality of life in patients with chronic, non-specific neck pain. Thirty-five patients, aged 20-48 years, with chronic non-specific neck pain, completed validated questionnaires regarding neck pain intensity, pain-associated disability, catastrophic thoughts, and quality of life. The range of cervical motion was assessed using a digital goniometer. HRV indices were recorded in three positions (supine, sitting, and standing) through a smartphone application. Several significant correlations were observed between HRV indices and neck pain disability, the helplessness factor of catastrophizing, neck rotation, and quality of life. These correlations were only observed in the standing position. Pain catastrophizing was positively correlated with disability and pain intensity during active neck movement (Pearson r = 0.544, < 0.01; Pearson r = 0.605, < 0.01, respectively). Quality of life was negatively correlated with pain intensity during active movement (Pearson r = -0.347, < 0.05). HRV indices were correlated with the psychological and physical domains of neck pain. These cardiac indices have been related to neck pain variables in some previous studies. Further research is needed to confirm this relationship in different daily conditions.
PubMed: 38891130
DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12111055 -
BMC Geriatrics Jun 2024Physical disability is an important cause of affecting the quality of life in the elderly. The association between standing height and physical disability is less...
BACKGROUND
Physical disability is an important cause of affecting the quality of life in the elderly. The association between standing height and physical disability is less studied.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this study is to investigate the possible link between standing height and physical disability among U.S. adults aged 60 years and older.
METHODS
The cross-sectional data were obtained from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2015-2018. Physical disability was assessed by six questions: "Have serious difficulty hearing (SDH)?", "Have serious difficulty seeing (SDS)?", "Have serious difficulty concentrating (SDC)?", "Have serious difficulty walking (SDW)?", "Have difficulty dressing or bathing (DDB)?" and "Have difficulty doing errands alone (DDEA)?". Responses to these questions were "yes" or "no". Answer yes to one of the above six questions was identified as physical disability. Standing height (cm) was measured with an altimeter. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to examine the possible link between standing height and physical disability after adjustment for all covariates.
RESULTS
A total of 2624 participants aged ≥ 60 years were included in our study, including 1279 (48.7%) females and 1345 (51.3%) males. The mean age of participants was 69.41 ± 6.82 years. After adjusting for all potential confounders, the inverse relationship between standing height and all physical disability (APD) was statistically significant (OR = 0.976, 95%CI:0.957-0.995). In addition, among six types of physical disability (SDH, SDS, SDC, SDW, DDB, DDEA), standing height was also a protective factor for SDW (OR = 0.961, 95%CI:0.939-0.983) and DDEA (OR = 0.944, 95%CI:0.915-0.975) in the full-adjusted model.
CONCLUSION
The cross-sectional population based study demonstrates that standing height is a protective factor for physical disability among U.S. adults aged 60 years and older.
Topics: Humans; Female; Male; Aged; Cross-Sectional Studies; Middle Aged; Nutrition Surveys; United States; Disabled Persons; Body Height; Aged, 80 and over; Standing Position; Disability Evaluation
PubMed: 38890578
DOI: 10.1186/s12877-024-05100-3 -
Journal of Pharmacy & Bioallied Sciences Apr 2024Dental education is unique, with clinical/practical learning much different from other professionals. In dentistry, students are exposed much earlier in their curriculum...
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE
Dental education is unique, with clinical/practical learning much different from other professionals. In dentistry, students are exposed much earlier in their curriculum to patients, performing procedures under direct/indirect supervision. Hence, the present review attempted to assess the standing position of dentistry in blended learning worldwide.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
E-learning modality was at its primitive stage as food for thought among educational task force committees, with only a handful of developed and developing countries equipped with it. During this pandemic, "WhatsApp" became a savior, as it was a widely used educational device among dental teachers and students. Furthermore, it was easily applicable in places where there was difficulty in obtaining regular internet bandwidth, especially in remote/rural areas. It is noteworthy that blended learning/e-learning, when complemented with the conventional teaching method, upskill critical thinking and problem-solving capabilities. Blended learning or virtual reality education should be made feasible without disparity, worldwide. Mind training, both students and staff in hybrid e-learning, is the need of the hour not only to keep pace with digitalized dentistry but to prepare the students to face real-world situations.
CONCLUSION
The sustainability of dental education should be rethought by dental schools with "Complimented Digital learning" wherever feasible, not only to cope with current trends but also to face unforeseen future challenges.
PubMed: 38882722
DOI: 10.4103/jpbs.jpbs_425_23 -
Soins; La Revue de Reference Infirmiere Jun 2024
Topics: Humans; Sitting Position; Standing Position
PubMed: 38880586
DOI: 10.1016/j.soin.2024.04.006 -
PloS One 2024Standing up from a chair is a key daily life activity that is sensitive to functional limitations as we age and associated with falls, frailty, and institutional living....
Standing up from a chair is a key daily life activity that is sensitive to functional limitations as we age and associated with falls, frailty, and institutional living. Predictive neuromusculoskeletal models can potentially shed light on the interconnectivity and interdependency of age-related changes in neuromuscular capacity, reinforcement schemes, sensory integration, and adaptation strategies during stand-up. Most stand-up movements transfer directly into walking (sit-to-walk). The aim of this study was to develop and validate a neuromusculoskeletal model with reflex-based muscle control that enables simulation of the sit-to-walk movement under various conditions (seat height, foot placement). We developed a planar sit-to-walk musculoskeletal model (11 degrees-of-freedom, 20 muscles) and neuromuscular controller, consisting of a two-phase stand-up controller and a reflex-based gait controller. The stand-up controller contains generic neural pathways of delayed proprioceptive feedback from muscle length, force, velocity, and upper-body orientation (vestibular feedback) and includes both monosynaptic an antagonistic feedback pathways. The control parameters where optimized using a shooting-based optimization method, based on a high-level optimization criterium. Simulations were compared to recorded kinematics, ground reaction forces, and muscle activation. The simulated kinematics resemble the measured kinematics and muscle activations. The adaptation strategies that resulted from alterations in seat height, are comparable to those observed in adults. The simulation framework and model are publicly available and allow to study age-related compensation strategies, including reduced muscular capacity, reduced neural capacity, external perturbations, and altered movement objectives.
Topics: Humans; Walking; Biomechanical Phenomena; Movement; Muscle, Skeletal; Models, Biological; Computer Simulation; Gait; Adaptation, Physiological; Sitting Position
PubMed: 38870249
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0305328 -
Spine Surgery and Related Research May 2024Studies describing the relationship between the hip and spine have reported that corrective spinal surgery for adult spinal deformity (ASD) affects the orientation of...
INTRODUCTION
Studies describing the relationship between the hip and spine have reported that corrective spinal surgery for adult spinal deformity (ASD) affects the orientation of the acetabulum. However, the extent to which spinal correction in ASD affects acetabular anteversion in the standing position is unclear, especially after total hip arthroplasty, for which dislocation is a concern. The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in anterior acetabular coverage in the upright position due to extensive correction surgery for ASD.
METHODS
Thirty-six consecutive patients who had undergone spinal corrective surgery from the thoracolumbar region to the pelvis were enrolled and evaluated. The ventral-central-acetabular (VCA) angle and anterior acetabular head index (AAHI) were measured with a false-profile view to evaluate the relationship between acetabular anteversion in the standing position and spinopelvic parameters before and after surgery. The spinopelvic parameters measured included thoracic kyphosis, pelvic incidence, pelvic tilt (PT), sacral slope, lumbar lordosis (LL), sagittal vertical axis, and global tilt.
RESULTS
The VCA angle and AAHI were significantly increased after spinal deformity correction (p<0.001). The changes in LL and PT were correlated with the VCA angle (LL: right, ρ=0.56; left, ρ=0.55, p<0.001; PT: right, ρ=-0.59; left, ρ=-0.64, p<0.001) and AAHI (LL: right, ρ=0.51; left, ρ=0.58, p<0.01; PT: right, ρ=-0.52; left, ρ=-0.59, p<0.01), respectively. Linear regression analysis revealed that a 10° increase in LL results in 1.4°-1.9° and 1.6%-2% increases in the VCA angle and AAHI, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS
Surgical correction for ASD significantly affects sagittal spinopelvic parameters, resulting in increased acetabular anteversion. The anterior coverage of the acetabulum in the postoperative standing position could be predicted with the intraoperatively measured LL, and evaluation using a false-profile was considered useful for treating ASD, particularly in patients after total hip arthroplasty.
PubMed: 38868798
DOI: 10.22603/ssrr.2023-0273 -
Frontiers in Medicine 2024Pregnancy introduces significant physiological changes, notably impacting respiratory dynamics, especially during the second trimester. Data remain inconclusive about...
BACKGROUND
Pregnancy introduces significant physiological changes, notably impacting respiratory dynamics, especially during the second trimester. Data remain inconclusive about how body posture might influence lung function in pregnant women. We aimed to examine the impact of body position on slow vital capacity in pregnant women during their second trimester.
METHODS
This observational study was carried out at King Khalid Hospital in Saudi Arabia, involving pregnant women in their second trimester, from 14 to 26 weeks of gestation. We utilized the KoKo® Legend Portable Office Spirometer to measure slow vital capacity (SVC) in both sitting and standing positions. Participants' demographic details were recorded, ensuring a comprehensive analysis that accounted for age, BMI, and gestational age.
RESULTS
136 pregnant women participated in this study, a paired-sample -test revealed no statistically significant difference between sitting (M = 2.31, SD = 0.49) and standing (M = 2.33, SD = 0.5) positions, = 0.24, However; the mean value of SVC in sitting position was significantly different between 4th month of pregnancy (M = 2.17, SD = 0.44) and 6th month of pregnancy (M = 2.45, SD = 0.48), = 0.016.
CONCLUSION
The performance of the SVC in both positions was not significantly affected. However, an increase in gestational age had a notable impact on SVC performance, particularly during sitting positions, due to the changes in respiratory physiology during pregnancy.
PubMed: 38863888
DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1351681