Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Iria Da Cuna-Carrera, Alejandra Alonso-Calvete, Eva M. Lantaron-Caeiro, Mercedes Soto-Gonzalez
Summary: Chronic low back pain is a common dysfunction in the spine, and studies have found changes in the thickness of abdominal muscles in patients with this condition.
Review
Clinical Neurology
E. O. Wesselink, J. J. M. Pool, J. Mollema, K. A. Weber, J. M. Elliott, M. W. Coppieters, A. L. Pool-Goudzwaard
Summary: A systematic review was conducted to investigate the effect of exercise on paraspinal fatty infiltration in people with LBP. The review found conflicting evidence for the reversibility of paraspinal muscle quality. Limited studies indicated that exercise may not have a significant effect on reducing paraspinal fatty infiltration. More large-scale randomized controlled trials are needed to draw firmer conclusions.
EUROPEAN SPINE JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Biophysics
Ji Soo Choi, Hayoung Kim, Jiwoon Lim, Ju Seok Ryu
Summary: Walking is beneficial for chronic low back pain patients, and fast walking recruits more trunk muscles. Abdominal bracing improves low back pain and facilitates trunk muscle activation. The study found that walking velocity and abdominal bracing have significant effects on trunk muscle activation in chronic low back pain patients.
JOURNAL OF BIOMECHANICS
(2022)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Xuedou Yu, Ligang Ma, Ruihua He, Jian Zhao, Shanshan Wang
Summary: The study highlights the importance of strength quality training and waist protection scheme in heavy antagonistic sports events. It analyzes the test results of athletes' joints, evaluates muscle strength, and takes optimization measures to prevent sports injuries. This has significant guiding implications for athletes' training and rehabilitation.
BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL
(2022)
Article
Robotics
Sang-Yoep Lee, Jin-Oh Hahn, Jaewon Beom, Ji-Hong Park, Han Eol Cho, Seong-Woong Kang, Kyu-Jin Cho
Summary: Existing technologies for patients with respiratory insufficiency have mainly focused on providing assistance in breathing, neglecting the need for assistance in other respiratory functions. This study proposes Exo-Abs, a wearable robotic system that can assist various respiratory functions by applying compensatory force to a user's abdomen. The system demonstrated significant improvement in breathing, coughing, and speaking functions by providing on-demand and self-reliant assistance to users.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ROBOTICS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Ramon de Oliveira Scatolin, Gisele Harumi Hotta, Ann M. Cools, Guilherme Augusto Paiva Custodio, Anamaria Siriani de Oliveira
Summary: Conscious contraction of the abdominal muscles can increase the activation of the middle and lower trapezius on the symptomatic side, and the serratus anterior on the asymptomatic side. Additionally, conscious activation of the abdominal muscles during shoulder open kinetic chain exercises can enhance the activation of the trapezius muscle on the symptomatic side.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Julie A. Hides, Gunda Lambrecht, Christopher T. Sexton, Casey Pruett, Nora Petersen, Patrick Jaekel, Andre Rosenberger, Guillaume Weerts
Summary: The study found that exposure to microgravity led to changes in the size and function of the lumbar multifidus and anterolateral abdominal muscles, but these changes could be partially restored through a post-flight reconditioning program.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Rui Wang, Xiao-Long Chang, Suparata Kiartivich, Xue-Qiang Wang
Summary: This study aimed to observe the effect of Tai Chi Quan on the pressure pain thresholds of lower back muscles in healthy women. The results showed that 40 minutes of Tai Chi practice significantly increased the pressure pain thresholds, with an average increase of 17.2%.
JOURNAL OF PAIN RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Mathematical & Computational Biology
Cristian Camardella, Melisa Junata, King Chun Tse, Antonio Frisoli, Raymond Kai-Yu Tong
Summary: This study investigated the existence of a minimum muscle set, called optimal set, for an upper-limb myoelectric application that preserves performance of motor activity prediction and the physiological meaning of synergies. Results confirmed that the muscle set can be reduced to achieve comparable hand force estimation performances, and muscle synergies from the global optimal muscle set showed significant similarity with full-set related ones.
FRONTIERS IN COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Orthopedics
Yun Tu, Guangyu Tang, Li Li, Rui Ji, Rui Tang, Shuling Wang, Jingqi Zhu
Summary: This study investigated the degenerate characteristics of lumbar and abdominal muscles in middle-aged and elderly people with varying bone mass using QCT. They found that SMI of rectus abdominis (RA) was positively correlated with volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD) and could be a potential imaging marker for predicting abnormal bone mass.
BMC MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Yuling Zhang, Danni Yin, Xu Pang, Zhizhong Deng, Shaoze Yan
Summary: The microstructures and mechanical properties of honeybee abdominal muscles were observed and measured. The similarity and symmetry of muscle distribution contribute to abdominal movement, and the nonlinear and rate-sensitive properties enable them to adapt to environmental changes rapidly. These findings provide a new reference for studying the biomechanical properties of other arthropod insects' muscles.
JOURNAL OF THE MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR OF BIOMEDICAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Grzegorz Mikolajowski, Malgorzata Palac, Pawel Linek
Summary: The study aims to present a newly developed and automatic measurement procedure to directly control airflow and simultaneously collect ultrasound images at the programmed breathing phase. The experiment was conducted on 10 healthy individuals, comparing the measurements obtained manually with an external device controlling the peak phases of tidal inspiration and expiration. Results suggest that the measurement procedure may affect the interpretation of results, with the TrA shear modulus being the most vulnerable to errors related to the measurement procedure.
COMPUTER METHODS AND PROGRAMS IN BIOMEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Urban Studies
Carolina Foglia, Maria Laura Parisi, Nicola Pontarollo
Summary: The Covid-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on the well-being of elderly individuals, who are already at risk of isolation and loneliness. This paper explores the gaps that need to be addressed in order to create age-friendly cities, especially after the dysfunction and fragility caused by the pandemic. The results of this study can provide valuable insights for policymakers to improve the perception of age-friendliness in urban environments.
Article
Engineering, Industrial
Pui W. Kong, Tommy Y. W. Kan, Roslan Abdul Ghani Bin Mohamed Jamil, Wei P. Teo, Jing W. Pan, Noor Hafiz Abd Halim, Hasan Kuddoos Abu Bakar Maricar, David Hostler
Summary: This study found that approximately 50% of the firefighters experienced low back pain in the past year, but most of them were still able to work. Biomechanically, there were no differences in back muscle characteristics between firefighters with and without back pain history. Back disabilities were not related to any biomechanical or demographic measures. Overall, these frontline firefighters are highly functional and did not show diminished physical or neuromuscular responses despite experiencing some back pain.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Pablo Hernandez-Lucas, Juan Lopez-Barreiro, Jose Luis Garcia-Soidan, Vicente Romo-Perez
Summary: The study indicates that implementing a theoretical-practical program based on the Back School has beneficial effects on low back functionality and reduces the number of medical visits due to low back pain in adult population.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Ampicha Nawai, Sutthida Phongphanngam, Montri Khumrungsee, Suzanne G. Leveille
Summary: This study investigated factors associated with nutrition risk among Thai community-dwelling older adults, finding that factors such as age, income, living situation, health conditions, and fall history were significant predictors of nutritional risk. The results highlight the need for multifactorial interventions to address geriatric nutrition problems and further research to find effective solutions for malnutrition in older adults.
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Sarah A. Welch, Rachel E. Ward, Marla K. Beauchamp, Suzanne G. Leveille, Thomas Travison, Jonathan F. Bean
Summary: This study evaluated the use of SPPB in assessing fall risk in older adults, finding that both SPPB and its components can independently predict fall risk. Over a 4-year follow-up period, low total baseline SPPB and gait time performances predicted higher fall risk. Stratifying the sample by the STEADI model revealed that those with the lowest SPPB scores and a positive fall risk screen had the highest fall risk.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Sara L. Jackson, Hannah Shucard, Joshua M. Liao, Sigall K. Bell, Alan Fossa, Thomas H. Payne, Lisa M. Reisch, Andrea C. Radick, Catherine M. DesRoches, Patricia Fitzgerald, Suzanne Leveille, Jan Walker, Joann G. Elmore
Summary: This study aimed to understand the experiences of care partners accessing patient information through electronic portals. The majority of care partners, who were often family members, considered access to electronic visit notes very important for promoting positive health behaviors. They suggested improvements to the portal design, such as separate logins for care partners and avoiding judgmental language in the notes.
PATIENT EDUCATION AND COUNSELING
(2022)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Yurun Cai, Suzanne G. Leveille, Ling Shi, Ping Chen, Tongjian You
Summary: Chronic pain in older adults is associated with specific circumstances of falls, such as indoor falls in living or dining rooms, and falls due to health problems or feeling dizzy. However, fallers with moderate-to-severe pain are less likely to fall while going down stairs or due to a slip or trip.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Jan Walker, Suzanne Leveille, Gila Kriegel, Chen-Tan Lin, Stephen K. Liu, Thomas H. Payne, Kendall Harcourt, Zhiyong Dong, Patricia Fitzgerald, Matthew Germak, Lawrence Markson, Sara L. Jackson, Hannah Shucard, Joann G. Elmore, Tom Delbanco
Summary: OurNotes intervention, where patients and clinicians co-generate notes, is well received by both patients and providers, with most finding it beneficial. Patients find it easy to provide information and believe sending answers before the visit is a good idea, while clinicians typically incorporate the submissions into visit notes.
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL INTERNET RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
Olga Andreeva, Wei Ding, Suzanne G. Leveille, Yurun Cai, Ping Chen
Summary: Falls are a major factor in the development of disabilities in older adults. This study examines novel risk factors for falls in community-living older adults and proposes a multi-source learning approach called the Synergy LSTM model, which utilizes complementarity between textual fall descriptions and people's physical characteristics.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
James M. Muchira, Philimon N. Gona, Mulubrhan F. Mogos, Eileen M. Stuart-Shor, Suzanne G. Leveille, Mariann R. Piano, Laura L. Hayman
Summary: Based on the analysis of data from the Framingham Heart Study, this research found that parental cardiovascular health is associated with cardiovascular disease burden in adult offspring. Maternal cardiovascular health was strongly associated with healthy life years lost from heart disease in offspring, while paternal cardiovascular health showed no significant association. Investment in cardiovascular health promotion could reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease in the current and future generation of adults.
CIRCULATION-CARDIOVASCULAR QUALITY AND OUTCOMES
(2023)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Michelle A. McKay, Janell L. Mensinger, Melissa O'Connor, Madison Utz, Alexander Costello, Suzanne Leveille
Summary: This study aimed to explore the self-reported symptoms causing mobility difficulties in older adults and their impact on fear of falling (FOF). The study found that pain was the primary symptom causing mobility difficulty and contributed to a higher burden of FOF.
AGING CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Julie A. Wright, Julie E. Volkman, Suzanne G. Leveille, Daniel J. Amante
Summary: The study found that about half of emerging adults had access to a patient portal, with the majority reporting using at least one feature. Factors associated with increased portal use included increased patient engagement and total clinical encounters. Self-reported eHealth literacy was not associated with patient portal use in this diverse sample of emerging adults.
JMIR FORMATIVE RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Computer Science, Information Systems
Yuqing Zhang, Suzanne G. Leveille, Ling Shi
Summary: The study found that multiple chronic diseases were associated with edentulism and tooth loss. People with multimorbidity are more likely to be edentulous than those with one or no chronic disease. The findings from this study will help to identify populations at increased risk for oral problems and nutritional deficits, thus the assessment of oral health should be evaluated further as an important component of chronic illness care.
FRONTIERS IN BIG DATA
(2022)
Meeting Abstract
Nursing
Michelle Mckay, Janell Mensinger, Melissa O'Connor, Madison Utz, Alexander Costello, Suzanne Leveille
Meeting Abstract
Nursing
Semiha Bozkurt, Suzanne Leveille
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
James M. Muchira, Philimon N. Gona, Mulubrhan F. Mogos, Eileen Stuart-Shor, Suzanne G. Leveille, Mariann R. Piano, Laura L. Hayman
Summary: This study examined the association between parental cardiovascular health and the time to onset of cardiovascular disease in their offspring. It found that offspring of parents with ideal cardiovascular health had a greater CVD-free survival. Maternal cardiovascular health was a more accurate predictor of offspring's CVD-free survival than paternal cardiovascular health, emphasizing the importance of interventions involving mothers to break the intergenerational cycle of CVD-related morbidity and mortality.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PREVENTIVE CARDIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Nursing
Yael Koren, Suzanne Leveille, Tongjian You
Summary: Group tai chi interventions for older adults are found to increase social support, which may further enhance the health benefits of tai chi exercise among this population.
RESEARCH IN GERONTOLOGICAL NURSING
(2021)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Yurun Cai, Jeffrey M. Hausdorff, Jonathan F. Bean, Brad Manor, Tongjian You, Suzanne G. Leveille
Summary: Participation in cognitive activities is associated with better neuromotor performance and mobility in older adults, potentially reducing the risk of falls. Prospective and intervention studies are needed to further investigate the effects of cognitive activities on preventing mobility decline over time.
AGING CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH
(2021)