From Muscle to the Myofascial Unit: Current Evidence and Future Perspectives.

The "motor unit" or the "muscle" has long been considered the quantal element in the control of movement. However, in recent years new research has proved the strong interaction between muscle fibers and intramuscular connective tissue, and between muscles and fasciae, suggesting that the muscles can no longer be considered the only elements that organize movement. In addition, innervation and vascularization of muscle is strongly connected with intramuscular connective tissue. This awareness induced Luigi Stecco, in 2002, to create a new term, the "myofascial unit", to describe the bilateral dependent relationship, both anatomical and functional, that occurs between fascia, muscle and accessory elements. The aim of this narrative review is to understand the scientific support for this new term, and whether it is actually correct to consider the myofascial unit the physiological basic element for peripheral motor control.

Myofascial points treatment with focused extracorporeal shock wave therapy (f-ESWT) for plantar fasciitis: an open label randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Plantar fasciitis (PF) is a common cause of heel pain. Among the several conservative treatment options, extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) is considered the standard treatment. However, recent studies suggest that PF may be sustained by a myofascial impairment proximal to the pain area with a biomechanical disequilibrium of the entire limb and pelvis. AIM: By combining the concepts of fascial manipulation and ESWT, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the ESWT on myofascial points in a sample of subjects with PF. DESIGN: Open label randomized controlled clinical trial. SETTING: Outpatient clinic. POPULATION: Patients with PF were randomly assigned to an experimental treatment group (EG), treated with focused ESWT on myofascial points, and a control group (CG), treated with the focused ESWT traditional approach on the medial calcaneal tubercle. METHODS: Every patient underwent a 3-session program and follow-up after 1 and 4 months. Outcome measures included the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS) and the Italian Foot Functional Index (17-iFFI). RESULTS: Thirty patients were enrolled in the study. Four patients of the CG dropped out the study, therefore twenty-six patients were included in the final analysis. Improvement in 17-iFFI and FAOS scores was observed in both groups starting from the third treatment and confirmed at the 1-month and 4-month follow-ups, with earlier improvement in the score values observed in the EG. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of the myofascial points with ESWT in subjects suffering from plantar fasciitis could be an effective treatment option. It fosters the hypothesis that a global biomechanical re-equilibrium of the body would be necessary to completely solve the pathology. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT: ESWT on myofascial points could provide an interesting alternative with better outcomes in terms of time needed for recovery compared to traditional ESWT for the conservative management of PF.

Kinematic bidimensional analysis of the propulsion technique in wheelchair rugby athletes.

Wheelchair rugby is a sport ideated for individuals with cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI) which is extremely important for maintaining their neuromuscular abilities and improving their social and psychological wellbeing. However, due to the frequent changes in direction and speed it considerably stresses the players' upper limbs. 13 athletes have undergone two sports-related tests on an inertial drum bench and several kinematic parameters have been registered. Most athletes use a semi-circular pattern which is considered protective for the upper limb. With increasing speed, range of motion (ROM) increases. Release angles increment and contact angles reduce, displacing the push angle forward to increase speed. Instead, the more anterior late push angle used to increase velocity is a factor which further loads the shoulder joint. However, other factors affecting propulsion technique, such as posture and wheelchair set up should be studied to further reduce loading on the upper limb.

Role of fasciae around the median nerve in pathogenesis of carpal tunnel syndrome: microscopic and ultrasound study.

This study investigated the connections between the median nerve paraneural sheath and myofascial structures near it, from both macroscopic and microscopic points of view. Four samples of median nerve and surrounding tissues were excised from nine non-embalmed upper limbs for microscopic analysis. Ultrasound images were analysed in 21 healthy subjects and 16 carpal tunnel syndrome patients to evaluate median nerve transversal displacement during finger motion at carpal tunnel and forearm levels. An anatomical continuity between epimysium and paraneural sheath and a reduction of paraneural fat tissue from proximal to distal was found in all samples. Median nerve displacements at both levels were significantly reduced in carpal tunnel syndrome subjects (P < 0.001). It was observed that the median nerve is not an isolated structure but is entirely connected to myofascial structures. Therefore, unbalanced tension of epimysial fasciae can affect the paraneural sheath, limiting nerve displacement, and consequently this must be included in carpal tunnel syndrome pathogenesis.

A global approach for plantar fasciitis with extracorporeal shockwaves treatment.

Extracorporeal Shockwaves Treatment is considered an effective therapeutic option for plantar fasciitis, but the standard application in the medial insertion of the plantar fascia on the calcaneus has provided ambiguous evidences. In this case, a 63-year man with plantar fasciitis was treated in a 3-session program and Foot and Ankle Outcome Scale and Foot Functional Index questionnaires were chosen for the clinical outcome evaluation. The therapy was focused on the active trigger or myofascial points of the leg, thigh and pelvis in order to return the correct equilibrium of the myofascial system of the whole limb. The patient has already reported an improvement after the second session (FAOS: 76 vs 33, FFI: 85%) which was confirmed in the third one and in the 1-month follow up (FAOS: 79, FFI: 6%) Results suggest that plantar fasciitis may be due to proximal rigidity or tension of the fascia and a global approach using ESWT may have a similar or better outcome respect to the standard application.

Dermatome and fasciatome.

Increased knowledge of the rich innervation of the deep fascia and its anatomical organization indicates the need to reevaluate maps of the dermatome according to the new findings. The authors present a distinction between dermatome and fasciatome, basing their approach to the literature on nerve root stimulation and comparing dermatomeric and myomeric maps. The former represents the portion of tissue composed of skin, hypodermis, and superficial fascia supplied by all the cutaneous branches of an individual spinal nerve; the latter includes the portion of deep fascia supplied by the same nerve root and organized according to force lines to emphasize the main directions of movement. The dermatome is important for esteroception, whereas the fasciatome is important for proprioception. If they are altered, the dermatome shows clearly localized pain and the fasciatome irradiating pain according to the organization of the fascial anatomy. Clin. Anat. 32:896-902, 2019. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.