Evaluation of orofacial force-related measures using a novel measuring device: explanation of associations with speech rate in dysarthria.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the potential associations between orofacial force-related measures and speech rate in matched groups of 23 adults with dysarthria, and 69 healthy adults. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A novel piezoresistive sensor-based device was utilized to obtain the orofacial maximum forces (OMFs) and rate of force development (RFD) measures. The study computed alternating motion rates (AMRs), sequential motion rates (SMRs), and articulation rate (AR) for all participants. The analysis included between-group comparisons and correlation analyses. The study also examined the reliability of the OMFs and RFD measures. RESULTS: Individuals with dysarthria exhibited significantly slower speech rates (approximately 41.89% to 56.53% slower) compared to the control group. Except for a few exceptions in the jaw, the dysarthria group demonstrated significantly lower OMFs and RFD measures. The correlation analysis revealed that OMFs were weakly to moderately correlated (r = .488-.674) and RFD measures were very weak to moderately correlated (r = .047-.578) with speech rate measures. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that reduced OMFs and RFD measures may contribute to the slowed speech rate observed in adults with dysarthria. The study also highlights that OMFs are significantly more reliable (day-to-day) than RFD measures.

Overview of Stem Cell Therapy in Intervertebral Disc Disease: Clinical Perspective.

Intervertebral Disc Degeneration (IDD) is recognized as an aging process, an important and most common pathological condition caused by an imbalance of anabolic and catabolic metabolisms in the Intervertebral Disc (IVD), and leads to changes in the Extracellular Matrix (ECM), impaired metabolic regulation of Nucleus Pulposus (NP), and increased oxidative stress. IDD is mostly associated with pain in the back and neck, which is referred to as a type of disability. Pharmacological and surgical interventions are currently used to treat IDD, but evidence has shown that these interventions do not have the ability to inhibit the progression of IDD and restore IVD function because IVD lacks the intrinsic capacity for regeneration. Thus, therapies that rely on a degenerative cell repair mechanism may be a viable alternative strategy. Biological interventions have been assessed by attempting to regenerate IVD by restoring ECM and cellular function. Over the past decade, stem cell-based therapies have been considered, and promising results have been obtained in various studies. Given this, we reviewed clinical trials and preliminary studies of biological disc repair with a focus on stem cell therapy-based therapies.

Psychometric properties of the Persian version of the oral motor assessment scale in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy.

The Oral Motor Assessment Scale (OMAS) is a diagnostic tool used to assess the oral motor skills in individuals with neurological and neuromuscular disorders. This assessment was developed by Brazilian researchers and for the first time, its validity and reliability was examined in Brazil. The purpose of the present study was to examine the validity and reliability of the adopted Persian version of the OMAS (OMAS-P) to assess the oral skills of Iranian individuals with cerebral palsy (CP). In this non-experimental descriptive-analytical study 120 people (60 children and adolescents with CP) aged 3 to 15 years and 60 healthy subjects) participated. The research was carried out in number of stages including translation and adaptation of the OMAS to Persian (OMAS-P) in a forward-backward way. The oral motor skills functionality of the 120 people was examined using the OMAS-P. To assess the repeatability and reliability of the OMAS-P the assessments was repeated on the participants with CP disorder after two weeks. Results corresponding to this study indicated a reasonable agreement (Kappa >0.7) for all the OMAS-P items. The mean values of the OMAS-P items were appreciably different between the two groups (p < 0.001). The Persian version of the OMAS (OMAS-P) indicated consistent psychometric properties and can be used as a reliable tool for oral motor skills assessment in people with CP. However, it seems that by specifying factors such as the time frame for the OMAS, the position of the child during assessment, and whether or not parents use facilitating techniques, the comprehensiveness and efficiency of the OMAS data will also upgrade.

A modified student personalized learning approach to prompt academic acquisition in health sciences.

BACKGROUND: Metacognition activation is described as a pillar of a driver in the learning process. The current study investigated the effectiveness of a modified protocol of "student personalized learning" (SPL) (integrating elements of differentiation approach) on metacognitive skills development. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 22 bachelors during the academic period of 2016-2017. A SPL program was designed in magnetic resonance physical principles (16 courses of 2 h). The participants underwent pre-SPL evaluation tests as to assess their respective prior knowledge, learning style, and metacognitive skills. Attendant advisory meeting allocated personalized educational planning and educational resources. During SPL, students were regularly monitored by advisory supervising meetings. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the features of the data (sums, frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations). RESULTS: The results showed a visual learning style emerging as prevalent (61.9%). The completion rate of SPL was 73%. SPL participants passed the educational module with a mean final examination score reaching 16.72 ± 3 versus 10.7 ± 5 assessed by prior knowledge testing (P < 0.05). The average global metacognition score enhanced from average to very good. Knowledge and control of self, knowledge and control of process planning, and knowledge of process regulation increased from average to very good levels. CONCLUSIONS: The resorted SPL proved its efficacy in recruiting and developing metacognitive skills. Nevertheless, knowledge and control of process-evaluation metacognitive component needs to be further investigated, especially when SPL relies on a short-term program.