Combined translational and rotational perturbations of standing balance reveal contributions of reduced reciprocal inhibition to balance impairments in children with cerebral palsy.

Balance impairments are common in cerebral palsy. When balance is perturbed by backward support surface translations, children with cerebral palsy have increased co-activation of the plantar flexors and tibialis anterior muscle as compared to typically developing children. However, it is unclear whether increased muscle co-activation is a compensation strategy to improve balance control or is a consequence of reduced reciprocal inhibition.

Identification of Neural and Non-Neural Origins of Joint Hyper-Resistance Based on a Novel Neuromechanical Model.

Joint hyper-resistance is a common symptom in neurological disorders. It has both neural and non-neural origins, but it has been challenging to distinguish different origins based on clinical tests alone. Combining instrumented tests with parameter identification based on a neuromechanical model may allow us to dissociate the different origins of joint hyper-resistance in individual patients.

Reduced reciprocal inhibition during clinical tests of spasticity is associated with impaired reactive standing balance control in children with cerebral palsy.

Background: Joint hyper-resistance is a common symptom in cerebral palsy (CP). It is assessed by rotating the joint of a relaxed patient. Joint rotations also occur when perturbing functional movements.

Increased muscle responses to balance perturbations in children with cerebral palsy can be explained by increased sensitivity to center of mass movement.

Background: Balance impairments are common in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Muscle activity during perturbed standing is higher in children with CP than in typically developing (TD) children, but we know surprisingly little about how sensorimotor processes for balance control are altered in CP. Sensorimotor processing refers to how the nervous system translates incoming sensory information about body motion into motor commands to activate muscles.

Of masks and methylene blue-The use of methylene blue photochemical treatment to decontaminate surgical masks contaminated with a tenacious small nonenveloped norovirus.

Background: In the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, reuse of personal protective equipment, specifically that of medical face coverings, has been recommended. The reuse of these typically single-use only items necessitates procedures to inactivate contaminating human respiratory and gastrointestinal pathogens. We previously demonstrated decontamination of surgical masks and respirators contaminated with infectious SARS-CoV-2 and various animal coronaviruses via low concentration- and short exposure methylene blue photochemical treatment (10 µM methylene blue, 30 minutes of 12,500-lux red light or 50,000 lux white light exposure).