Personalized Prediction of Postconcussive Working Memory Decline: A Feasibility Study.

Concussion, also known as mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), commonly causes transient neurocognitive symptoms, but in some cases, it causes cognitive impairment, including working memory (WM) deficit, which can be long-lasting and impede a patient's return to work. The predictors of long-term cognitive outcomes following mTBI remain unclear, because abnormality is often absent in structural imaging findings. Previous studies have demonstrated that WM functional activity estimated from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has a high sensitivity to postconcussion WM deficits and may be used to not only evaluate but guide treatment strategies, especially targeting brain areas involved in postconcussion cognitive decline.

Assessment of Wheelchair Propulsion Performance in an Immersive Virtual Reality Simulator.

Maneuvering a wheelchair is an important necessity for the everyday life and social activities of people with a range of physical disabilities. However, in real life, wheelchair users face several common challenges: articulate steering, spatial relationships, and negotiating obstacles. Therefore, our research group has developed a head-mounted display (HMD)-based intuitive virtual reality (VR) stimulator for wheelchair propulsion.

The psychometric properties of the cervical nonorganic signs in patients with neck pain: an assessment of pain expression.

Purpose: Neck pain is a common cause of disability. This study investigated the psychometric properties of the cervical nonorganic signs (CNOS), a tool for assessing abnormal illness behaviors in patients with neck pain.

Methods: The CNOS was administered on patients with neck pain.

Influences of Aerobic Dance on Cognitive Performance in Adults with Schizophrenia.

Cognitive impairment is one of the core features of schizophrenia. This study examined the influences of an aerobic dance programme on the cognitive functions of people with schizophrenia. A quasi-experimental matched-control design was applied.

Effect of a Wheelie Training Method With the Front Wheels on a Ramp in Novice Able-Bodied Participants: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The objective of this study was to determine if wheelie training that begins with learning how to balance with the front wheels on a ramp would increase the success rate, reduce the training time, and improve retention rates. A randomized controlled trial design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of wheelie training on a ramp setting (ramp group, n = 26) and conventional training (conventional group, n = 26). The main outcome measures were success rates in achieving wheelie competence, training time, and the retention rate in 7 and 30 days respectively.

Sliding and lower limb mechanics during sit-stand-sit transitions with a standing wheelchair.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the shear displacement between the body and backrest/seat, range of motion (ROM), and force acting on the lower limb joints during sit-stand-sit transitions by operating an electric-powered standing wheelchair.

Methods And Materials: The amounts of sliding along the backrest and the seat plane, ROM of lower limb joints, and force acting on the knee/foot were measured in twenty-four people with paraplegia.

Results: Without an antishear mechanism, the shear displacement was approximately 9 cm between the user's body and the backrest/seat surfaces.

Test-retest reliabilities of hand-held dynamometer for lower-limb muscle strength in intellectual disabilities.

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the test-retest reliabilities of hand-held dynamometer (HDD) for measuring lower-limb muscle strength in intellectual disabilities (ID). The other purposes were to: (1) compare the lower-limb muscle strength between children with and without ID; (2) probe the relationship between the muscle forces and agility performance in ID; and (3) explore the factors associated with muscle strength in ID. Sixty-one participants (30 boys and 31 girls; mean age=14.

Effect of backrest height on wheelchair propulsion biomechanics for level and uphill conditions.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of backrest height on wheelchair propulsion kinematics and kinetics.

Design: An intervention study with repeated measures.

Setting: University laboratory.

Effects of audio feedback on sitting behaviors of community-dwelling manual wheelchair users with spinal cord injuries.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether audio feedback obtained from a data logger could help community-dwelling manual wheelchair users (MWUs) to engage in pressure-relieving behaviors more frequently. Twenty community-dwelling MWUs completed the study. Data loggers with force sensors were installed on each participant's wheelchair.

The effect of chinese yuanji-dance on dynamic balance and the associated attentional demands in elderly adults.

Walking performance changes with age. This has implications for the problem of falls in older adults. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Yuanji-Dance practice on walking balance and the associated attention demand in healthy elderly.

Correlations between quality of life and psychological factors in patients with chronic neck pain.

The purpose of this study was to investigate health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and associated factors in patients with chronic neck pain (CNP). The HRQOL of patients with CNP was assessed by the Short Form-36 questionnaire in this cross-sectional study. To evaluate the psychological factors related to HRQOL, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, Chinese Health Questionnaire, and Beck Anxiety Inventory were used.

Effects of robot-aided bilateral force-induced isokinetic arm training combined with conventional rehabilitation on arm motor function in patients with chronic stroke.

Objective: To analyze the effects of conventional rehabilitation combined with bilateral force-induced isokinetic arm movement training on paretic upper-limb motor recovery in patients with chronic stroke.

Design: Single-cohort, pre- and postretention design.

Setting: Rehabilitation department at a medical university.

An investigation of rugby scrimmaging posture and individual maximum pushing force.

Although rugby is a popular contact sport and the isokinetic muscle torque assessment has recently found widespread application in the field of sports medicine, little research has examined the factors associated with the performance of game-specific skills directly by using the isokinetic-type rugby scrimmaging machine. This study is designed to (a) measure and observe the differences in the maximum individual pushing forward force produced by scrimmaging in different body postures (3 body heights x 2 foot positions) with a self-developed rugby scrimmaging machine and (b) observe the variations in hip, knee, and ankle angles at different body postures and explore the relationship between these angle values and the individual maximum pushing force. Ten national rugby players were invited to participate in the examination.

Predicting the grade of disabilty 1 year after stroke following rehabilitation.

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of grades of disability at least 1 year after stroke rehabilitation therapy. We recruited stroke patients from the inpatient rehabilitation department of a university hospital. The degree of disability was graded using the disability evaluation at least 1 year after stroke onset.

Kinematical measure for spastic reaching in children with cerebral palsy.

Background: Practitioners need more sensitive measure to quantify reaching movement for judgment of the treatment effects and reflecting the degrees of motor impairment in upper extremities. The purposes of this study were to identify the specific kinematic characteristics between normal and spastic reaching under different levels of accuracy, and to determine the most sensitive kinematic variable for quantifying the interference of spasticity on reaching.

Methods: Ten normal subjects as control group and ten subjects with spastic cerebral palsy as experimental group were studied.