Effects of orthoses on muscle activity and synergy during gait.

An orthosis is often used in rehabilitation to improve kinetic and kinematic parameters during gait. However, whether changes in neural control depend on wearing an orthosis during gait is unclear. We measured the muscle activity and synergy of the lower limb muscles without orthosis and with two types of orthoses: ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) and knee-ankle-foot orthosis (KAFO). Muscle activity during gait was measured in 15 healthy adults, and muscle synergies were extracted using non-negative matrix factorization. The results revealed that some muscle activities were significantly different among the three conditions. Post-hoc analysis indicated differences between each condition. Knee extensor muscle activity related to the loading response was significantly increased by wearing the AFO. In the KAFO condition, hip abductor muscle activity related to weight bearing was significantly decreased, and ankle dorsiflexor muscle activity was increased to secure clearance during the swing phase. However, the number of muscle synergies and complexity of muscle synergy did not significantly change among these conditions. However, along with changes in muscle activity, the activation pattern and weightings of muscle synergies tended to change with the use of orthoses. Each muscle activity was changed by wearing the orthosis; however, the immediate mechanical constraint did not change the framework of muscle synergy.

Whole-body vibration training improves the walking ability of a moderately impaired child with cerebral palsy: a case study.

[Purpose] Strength training is recommended for children with cerebral palsy. However, it is difficult for moderately impaired children with cerebral palsy, who require crutches for ambulation, to participate in this type of training. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether whole-body vibration training is an effective method of strengthening in a moderately impaired child with cerebral palsy. [Subject and Methods] This report describes an 8-year-old Japanese boy with cerebral palsy, who was ambulatory with crutches. The subject participated in physical therapy twice a week for 5 weeks. Whole-body vibration training was selected to complement the standing practice. The patient's crutch-walking ability, gross motor function, and spasticity were evaluated. [Results] The number of steps and walking duration were reduced in a 5-m walk test with crutches and gross motor function was improved. Further, the spasticity was reduced. [Conclusion] Whole-body vibration training is an effective physical therapy intervention in moderately impaired children with cerebral palsy, who are unable to walk without crutches.

Standardization of Clinical Skill Evaluation in Physical/Occupational Therapist Education -Effects of Introduction of an Education System Using OSCE-.

[Purpose] A major issue in physical/occupational therapist education is the improvement of students' clinical techniques. In this study, we introduced an education system using an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), and made an attempt at standardization of its evaluation. [Subjects] The subjects were 227 students in the classes of 2008 to 2010 who enrolled at our university between 2004 and 2006, before the introduction of the education system using OSCE, and 221 students in the classes of 2011 to 2013 who enrolled between 2007 and 2009, after the introduction. [Methods] Performances in attitude and skills (performance in clinical training and OSCE) were compared between before and after the introduction of OSCE. OSCE results were compared between before and after clinical trainings at each OSCE Level; and the correlation of between performances in clinical training and OSCE was examined. [Results] Performances in OSCE and clinical training (attitude, skills) were improved by the introduction of the education system using OSCE, but no significant correlation was observed in the relationship between performances in OSCE and clinical training. [Conclusion] Further studies should be conducted aiming at the standardization of clinical skill evaluation in postgraduate education to establish an education system using OSCE.

Protection by taurine against INOS-dependent DNA damage in heavily exercised skeletal muscle by inhibition of the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Taurine protects against tissue damage in a variety of models involving inflammation, especially the muscle. We set up a heavy exercise bout protocol for rats consisting of climbing ran on a treadmill to examine the effect of an intraabdominal dose of taurine (300 mg/kg/day) administered 1 h before heavy exercise for ten consecutive days. Each group ran on the treadmill at 20 m/min, 25% grade, for 20 min or until exhaustion within 20 min once each 10 days. Exhaustion was the point when an animal was unable to right itself when placed on its side. The muscle damage was associated with an increased accumulation of 8-nitroguanine and 8-OHdG in the nuclei of skeletal muscle cells. The immunoreactivities for NF-κB and iNOS were also increased in the exercise group. Taurine ameliorated heavy exercise-induced muscle DNA damage to a significant extent since it reduced the accumulation of 8-nitroguanine and 8-OHdG, possibly by down-regulating the expression of iNOS through a modulatory action on NF-κB signaling pathway. This study demonstrates for the first time that taurine can protect against intense exercise-induced nitrosative inflammation and ensuing DNA damage in the skeletal muscle of rats by preventing iNOS expression and the nitrosative stress generated by heavy exercise.

Postmortem changes in myoglobin content in organs.

Postmortem changes in myoglobin concentrations in blood and organs were investigated using an enzyme immunoassay by animal experiments in combination with immunohistochemical staining of human cases. Blood myoglobin concentrations were found to increase drastically within a very short time after death. Those in striated muscle, however, did not change by day 14 postmortem. Myoglobin content in the liver and kidney increased slightly by day 5 postmortem, and more obviously by day 7 or later. However, almost no change was observed by day 5 in the kidney when the renal artery and vein had been ligated just after death. In the thyroid gland and the lung, the myoglobin content markedly increased by day 7 postmortem, with the logarithmical values rising nearly linearly as the time after death passed. In the thyroid gland, concentrations reached the level of the striated muscle. The mechanisms of postmortem myoglobin increase in organs are thought to be direct diffusion from the striated muscle and/or distribution through the blood. To estimate the postmortem interval, the determination of myoglobin content in the thyroid gland or the lung appears to be useful.