Review
Health Care Sciences & Services
Tatiana Sampaio, Samuel Encarnacao, Olga Santos, Diogo Narciso, Joao P. Oliveira, Jose E. Teixeira, Pedro Forte, Jorge E. Morais, Catarina Vasques, Antonio Miguel Monteiro
Summary: This systematic review and meta-analysis found that Pilates training has a significant effect on improving balance in older adults. The findings provide evidence for the value of Pilates training as an intervention to enhance balance in the elderly population.
Review
Cell Biology
Thanwarat Chantanachai, Daina L. Sturnieks, Stephen R. Lord, Narelle Payne, Lyndell Webster, Morag E. Taylor
Summary: This systematic review identified risk factors for prospectively ascertained falls in older people with cognitive impairment living in the community. Balance deficits, poor mobility, slow gait speed, and depressive symptoms were found to be associated with fallers. Global cognition was not significantly associated with falls, suggesting interventions should focus on improving balance impairment. More high-quality research is needed to support these findings.
AGEING RESEARCH REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Charles Van Liew, Jessie M. Huisinga, Daniel S. Peterson
Summary: This study evaluated the impact of reactive postural control on fall rates in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) and found that delays in automatic postural responses uniquely account for increased fall rates in PwMS. In addition to clinical and balance assessments, muscle onset latency after balance perturbations may be a valuable tool for predicting falls in PwMS.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Matheus Almeida Souza, Daniel Goble, Paige Arney, Edgar Ramos Vieira, Gabriela Silveira-Nunes, Leonardo Intelangelo, Michelle Almeida Barbosa, Alexandre Carvalho Barbosa
Summary: This study aimed to characterize the risk of falling in older adults from South and North America using a portable force-plate. South American women showed better balance compared to other groups. No significant differences were found between North vs. South Americans, nor between males and females.
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Joe Hollinghurst, Helen Daniels, Richard Fry, Ashley Akbari, Sarah Rodgers, Alan Watkins, Sarah Hillcoat-Nalletamby, Neil Williams, Silviya Nikolova, David Meads, Andy Clegg
Summary: The study found that the Care&Repair Cymru home adaptation service can identify and reduce the likelihood of falls occurring at home in older people. Factors such as female gender, older age, increased frailty, and deprivation increase the risk of falls, while the odds of falling decrease post-intervention.
Article
Neurosciences
Sara A. Harper, Anne Z. Beethe, Christopher J. Dakin, David A. E. Bolton
Summary: Recent studies have shown that perturbation-based balance training can enhance balance recovery, but the transferability of this training is limited. The challenge lies in how to best equip individuals to deal with the variety of fall-inducing scenarios encountered in daily life using this training method.
Review
Rehabilitation
Claire Thwaites, Rohini Nayyar, Jannette Blennerhassett, Thorlene Egerton, Jasmine Tan, Kelly Bower
Summary: The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of telehealth interventions compared to in-person interventions in reducing falls risk or rates in adults with neurological conditions. The results suggest that telehealth interventions are safe, feasible, and acceptable in community-dwelling adults, and may improve balance outcomes in this population.
CLINICAL REHABILITATION
(2023)
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Daniel Joseph Warrington, Elizabeth Jane Shortis, Paula Jane Whittaker
Summary: This umbrella review of seven systematic reviews on wearable electronic devices for falls detection in adults found that these devices offer a low-cost and effective way to detect falls, with higher accuracy when sensors are placed on the trunk, foot, or leg. Multiple sensors can improve the accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity of these devices, highlighting the need for further research on their accuracy in real-world settings for frail older people.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Mariana Wingood, Elizabeth Peterson, Christopher Neville, Jennifer L. Vincenzo
Summary: This study developed a screening tool for identifying feet- and footwear-related influences on fall risk among community-dwelling older adults. The tool was evaluated and refined in two phases, resulting in a 20-item screening tool with high face and content validity.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Kenta Azukizawa, Kodai Hirose, Yuta Morigami, Naoki Higashi, Hiroyuki Uchida, Kazuki Hirao
Summary: The study aimed to examine the immediate effect of positive-word stimuli via a smartphone application on the multi-directional reach ability in young adults in Japan. The results showed that this intervention did not significantly improve the participants' ability in standing position.
ANNALS OF MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Guilherme Carlos Brech, Tatiana Godoy Bobbio, Kelem de Negreiros Cabral, Patricia Mota Coutinho, Leila Regina de Castro, Luis Mochizuki, Jose Maria Soares-Junior, Edmund Chada Baracat, Luiz Eugenio Garcez Leme, Julia Maria D'Andrea Greve, Angelica Castilho Alonso
Summary: This study evaluated the effect of aging on static balance in women and found a decline in postural balance with advancing age, particularly in women in their ninth decade (80 to 89 years of age). This age group may be a critical period for the deterioration of postural stability in women.
Article
Rehabilitation
Nicky Baker, Karen Grimmer, Sue Gordon
Summary: This study investigated which balance tests can differentiate near fallers from non-fallers and fallers. Among healthy community dwelling adults aged 40-75 years, near fallers were more likely to fail single-leg stance and dynamic balance tests compared to non-fallers. A new battery of tests showed promise in identifying near fallers with a sensitivity of 73.3% in this population.
PHYSIOTHERAPY THEORY AND PRACTICE
(2022)
Review
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Youngwook Kim, Michael N. Vakula, David A. E. Bolton, Christopher J. Dakin, Brennan J. Thompson, Timothy A. Slocum, Masaru Teramoto, Eadric Bressel
Summary: This study reviewed and evaluated the comparative effectiveness of various exercise-based interventions on reactive balance in older adults, and found that task-specific reactive balance exercise could be the optimal intervention for improving reactive balance in older adults.
FRONTIERS IN AGING NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Barry R. Greene, Killian McManus, Lilian Genaro Motti Ader, Brian Caulfield
Summary: Using smartphones for health and physical function assessment has great potential, providing low-cost, scalable access to care. A smartphone app for self-directed, unsupervised assessment of balance and falls risk showed a strong association between self-reported falls history and outcome measures, suggesting clinical usefulness.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Johanna Jonsdottir, Fabiola Giovanna Mestanza Mattos, Alessandro Torchio, Chiara Corrini, Davide Cattaneo
Summary: This cross-sectional study investigates the value of including stabilometric measures of sway with clinical measures of balance in models for identification of faller chronic stroke survivors, and the relations between variables. The results show that a model combining BBS, BI, and SwayML is best at accurately identifying faller status in persons in the chronic phase post stroke.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Mitchel A. Magrini, Rashelle Hoffman, Taylor Barnett, Jennifer Bruursema, Jacob Siedlik
Summary: This study aimed to assess the effect of a multicomponent rehabilitation protocol on functional outcomes in a post-acute care facility. The results showed that the protocol was able to improve clinical mobility and balance outcomes, such as gait speed, balance scores, and sit-to-stand velocity, in medically complex older patients.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
K. Doslikova, N. D. Reeves, C. N. Maganaris, V. Baltzopoulos, S. M. P. Verschueren, F. P. Luyten, R. K. Jones, D. T. Felson, M. J. Callaghan
Summary: This study aimed to examine the effect of a sleeve knee brace on knee biomechanics during stair negotiation in patellofemoral joint osteoarthritis patients. The findings showed that the knee brace significantly reduced the maximal flexion angle, adduction angle, sagittal and frontal range of motion, and sagittal peak extension moment during stair ascent. During stair descent, the knee brace significantly reduced the maximal flexion angle and total sagittal range of motion compared to control.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Savitha Subramaniam, Shuaijie Wang, Tanvi Bhatt
Summary: This study investigates the dance movement kinematics of people with chronic stroke under different types of assistance, including no assistance, safety harness assistance, and contact guard assistance with gait belt. The results show that there is a decrease in joint angle excursions in the no assistance condition compared to the safety harness assistance and contact guard assistance conditions for all song paces. The safety harness and contact guard assistance conditions have similar levels of joint angle excursions, except for higher hip (slow and fast pace) and ankle (medium pace) joint angle excursions in the contact guard assistance condition compared to the safety harness assistance condition.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Richa Gupta, Lauren Judkins, Chet S. Friday, Joseph B. Ulsh, Stephen J. Kovach III, Samir Mehta, Charles Tomonto, Guha Manogharan, Michael W. Hast
Summary: The study compared novel additively manufactured rib implants with a clinically used Control implant, finding that the novel implants had better construct stiffness and rotational performance than the control group, with all implants failing via bone fracture in the end.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Matteo Cioni, Antonino Casabona, Rosario Ferlito, Mariangela Pisasale, Domenico Marco Romeo, Giulia Messina, Maria Stella Valle
Summary: The study aimed to investigate the temporal changes of electromyographic activity in lower limb muscles during walking after injecting botulinum toxin A into the calf muscles of children with spastic cerebral palsy. The results showed that botulinum toxin A had a significant effect on electromyographic activity, with the most noticeable changes occurring between 4 and 8 weeks post-injection and full recovery at 16 weeks. Significant changes in muscle co-contraction were also observed on the treadmill.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Review
Engineering, Biomedical
Vitor La Banca, Joao Artur Bonadiman, Felipe Fernandes Gonzalez, Jonathan Adam Gustafson, Gustavo Leporace, Grant E. Garrigues, Jorge Chahla, Leonardo Metsavaht
Summary: Background: Latissimus dorsi transfer is a surgical procedure that can be used for treating posterosuperior rotator cuff tears. However, there is still no consensus on the biomechanical changes resulting from latissimus dorsi transfer.
Methods: We performed a systematic review of the literature on 3D motion analysis studies evaluating the effects of latissimus dorsi transfer on shoulder kinematics.
Findings: Our meta-analysis revealed a significant improvement in forward flexion and abduction following latissimus dorsi transfer. When comparing the latissimus transferred shoulder with an uninjured contralateral side, the meta-analysis found no significant difference in flexion range of motion, while abduction and external rotation were significantly higher in the uninjured shoulders.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Judith Bleuel, Igor Komnik, Iris Mittendorfer, Bjoern Michel, Steffen Willwacher
Summary: This study assessed the walking mechanics of patients with total knee arthroplasty during downhill hiking and compared them to a healthy control group. It was found that patients had lower knee flexion angles and weaker muscle strength compared to the controls. The muscle balance between quadriceps and hamstring muscles was related to the persistence of a stiff knee gait pattern after knee arthroplasty.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Sangsoo Park, Hyun-Joon Yoo, Jin Su Jang, Sang-Heon Lee
Summary: This study utilizes a neural network to measure spine curvature, providing a real-time, automated, and non-contact method for measuring spine posture. The trained model demonstrates low error rates and holds potential for practical applications.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Victor-Estuardo Leon-Roman, David Garcia-Mato, Irene Isabel Lopez-Torres, Javier Vaquero-Martin, Jose Antonio Calvo-Haro, Javier Pascau, Pablo Sanz-Ruiz
Summary: This study compared the tibial rotation between rotating hinge knee prosthesis and constrained condylar knee prosthesis in a clinical setting. The results showed that the postoperative Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score was significantly higher in the rotating hinge knee prosthesis group compared to the constrained condylar knee group, and the degrees of tibial rotation measured by inertial sensors were also significantly higher in the rotating hinge knee prosthesis group.
CLINICAL BIOMECHANICS
(2024)