The validity and reliability of the motor point detection system: a preliminary investigation of motor points of the triceps surae muscles.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the validity and reliability of the motor point detection system in cadavers and healthy young adults. DESIGN: Correlation statistics. SETTING: University research laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: Sixty-two lower limbs of 31 healthy young adults (mean age, 22.3+/-1.8) and 10 size-matched lower limbs from cadavers were used. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The validity of the motor point detection system's motor point measure was determined by comparing the motor point locations of the lower-leg muscles obtained from the motor point detection system with the established anatomic motor point locations from our previous cadaveric dissection study. The anatomic motor points were determined by tracing the terminal motor nerve branches on soleus, medial, and lateral gastrocnemius muscles through the dissection of adult cadavers. The test-retest reliability was determined by repeatedly measuring the locations of motor points in healthy young adults on 2 separate occasions, approximately 24 hours apart. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was computed to determine correlation, and an independent t test was used to determine the difference between the demographic and clinical variables at the significance level (P<.05). RESULTS: Correlation analysis revealed relatively high validity between the motor point detection system and cadaver-dissected motor point location measurements (ICC(2,1)=.71-.92, P<.05). The test-retest reliability showed excellent correlation between the repeated measures (range, ICC(1,2)=.90-.95 at P<.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that the motor point detection system was accurate and consistent in the measurement of motor point locations of the lower-leg muscles. This system can be considered as an alternative device to localize motor points in clinical settings. Our motor point detection system warrants further investigation in pathologic population.

Doxycycline reduces airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness in a murine model of toluene diisocyanate-induced asthma.

BACKGROUND: Toluene diisocyanate (TDI) is a leading cause of occupational asthma. Although considerable controversy remains regarding its pathogenesis, TDI-induced asthma is an inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by airway remodeling caused, at least in part, by an excess of extracellular matrix deposition in the airway wall. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are major proteolytic enzymes that are involved in extracellular matrix turnover because of their ability to cleave all proteins constituting extracellular matrix. Previous studies have reported that MMP-9 might play a role in chronic airway inflammation and remodeling in asthma. OBJECTIVE: An aim of the current study was to evaluate the effects of MMP-inhibiting antibiotic, doxycycline, and MMP inhibitors on hyperresponsiveness and inflammation of the airways in TDI-induced asthma. METHODS: We used a murine model for TDI-induced asthma to examine the effect of doxycycline or MMP inhibitors on bronchial inflammation and airway hyperresponsiveness. RESULTS: The following typical pathophysiologic features are observed in the lungs of the mice: airway inflammation, airway hyperresponsiveness, and increased expression of MMP-9 mRNA and protein. Administration of doxycycline and MMP inhibitors reduced all of these pathophysiologic findings. In addition, the increased phosphorylated Akt but not Akt protein levels in lung tissues after TDI inhalation were significantly reduced by the administration of doxycycline and MMP inhibitors. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that doxycycline may reduce airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness through phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathway in a murine model of TDI-induced asthma.