Age- and Parkinson-related differences in trunk and lower-limb muscle activation during four balance tasks: A case-control pilot study.

Background: Poor postural control has been reported in people with Parkinson's disease, which could be explained by the changes in muscular activation patterns related to antigravitational muscles. This study aims to measure the muscle activation of antigravitational muscles during balance tasks in individuals, with and without Parkinson's.

Methods: Sixteen (16) participants (9 with Parkinson's), aged ≥65 yrs.

Resistance training in women with myotonic dystrophy type 1: a multisystemic therapeutic avenue.

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is a hereditary disease characterized by muscular impairments. Fundamental and clinical positive effects of strength training have been reported in men with DM1, but its impact on women remains unknown. We evaluated the effects of a 12-week supervised strength training on physical and neuropsychiatric health.

Physical impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors with and without hip osteonecrosis: a PETALE cohort study.

Purpose: Long-term musculoskeletal complications represent a growing burden for survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (cALL). This study aimed to describe physical impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions in a high-risk subgroup of cALL survivors of the PETALE cohort.

Methods: This cross-sectional study, using observational data from the PETALE cohort, included a subgroup of survivors who presented high-risk criteria for late effects.

Group Physical Therapy Programs for Military Members With Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.

To compare the effects of personalized, supervised group-based programs (ie, group physical therapy programs) and usual one-on-one physical therapy care (ie, usual physical therapy care) on disability for military personnel suffering from low back pain, rotator cuff-related shoulder pain, patellofemoral pain syndrome, or lateral ankle sprain. Secondary outcomes were pain severity, pain-related fear, health-related quality of life, and patients' satisfaction with their condition and care. Non-inferiority pragmatic randomized clinical trial.

Conditioned pain modulation, kinesiophobia, and pain catastrophizing as prognostic factors for chronicity in a population with acute low back pain: An exploratory prospective study.

Background: Psychosocial factors and alteration of the somatosensory functions have been associated with persistent low back pain (LBP). A decreased capacity of the central nervous system to modulate pain has been suggested as a potential contributor to the persistence of pain.

Objective: To investigate whether conditioned pain modulation (CPM), initial symptoms/disability, kinesiophobia, and pain catastrophizing is associated with the transition from acute to chronic LBP.

Toward a Better Understanding of Walking Speed in Ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay: a Factor Exploratory Study.

Mobility limitations, including a decrease in walking speed, are major issues for people with autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS). Improving our understanding of factors influencing walking speed in ARSACS may inform the development of future interventions for gait rehabilitation and contribute to better clinical practices. The objective of the study was to identify the factors influencing the self-selected walking speed in adults with ARSACS.

A proposal for a universal physical therapy diagnostic concept.

Background: In Canada, as in other countries, the physical therapist (PT) must make a diagnosis to comply with direct access responsibilities. This means making a diagnosis is an entry-to-practice essential competency. However, there is no consensus across physical therapy practice domains and contexts regarding the diagnostic concept, i.

Integration of primary contact physiotherapists in the emergency department for individuals presenting with minor musculoskeletal disorders: Protocol for an economic evaluation.

Objectives: 1) To compare the average cost of an emergency department (ED) visit for various minor musculoskeletal disorders between two models of care (physiotherapist and ED physician or ED physician alone); 2) To evaluate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of these two models of care over a 3-month period post-initial visit; and 3) To estimate the ICER of three ED models of care (physiotherapist and ED physician, ED physician alone, physiotherapist alone) over a two-year period.

Methods: Obj.1: The costs incurred by participants in the two groups during their ED visit will be calculated using the Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing (TDABC) method.

Measuring upper limb active joint position sense: Introducing a new clinical tool - The Upper Limb Proprioception Reaching Test.

Background: Proprioception is our sense of body awareness, including the sub-category of active joint position sense (AJPS). AJPS is fundamental to joint stability and movement coordination. Despite its importance, there remain few confident ways to measure upper limb AJPS in a clinic.

Natural History of Autosomal Recessive Spastic Ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay: a 4-Year Longitudinal Study.

Autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS) is a neurologic disorder with generally well-known clinical manifestations. However, few studies assessed their progression rate using a longitudinal design. This study aimed to document the natural history of ARSACS over a 4-year period in terms of upper and lower limb functions, balance, walking capacity, performance in daily living activities, and disease severity.

Psychometric properties of a standardized protocol of muscle strength assessment by hand-held dynamometry in healthy adults: a reliability study.

Background: Maximal isometric muscle strength (MIMS) assessment is a key component of physiotherapists' work. Hand-held dynamometry (HHD) is a simple and quick method to obtain quantified MIMS values that have been shown to be valid, reliable, and more responsive than manual muscle testing. However, the lack of MIMS reference values for several muscle groups in healthy adults with well-known psychometric properties limits the use and the interpretation of these measures obtained with HHD in clinic.

Health-Related Quality of Life of Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department with a Musculoskeletal Disorder.

Background: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSKDs) are among the most disabling and costly non-fatal health conditions. They may lead to long-term consequences such as chronic pain, physical limitations, and poorer quality of life. They also account for a significant proportion of emergency department visits, representing between 18% and 25% of all visits, depending on country.

Strategies to reduce waiting times in outpatient rehabilitation services for adults with physical disabilities: A systematic literature review.

Objective: Identifying effective strategies to reduce waiting times is a crucial issue in many areas of health services. Long waiting times for rehabilitation services have been associated with numerous adverse effects in people with disabilities. The main objective of this study was to conduct a systematic literature review to assess the effectiveness of service redesign strategies to reduce waiting times in outpatient rehabilitation services for adults with physical disabilities.

Whole-brain morphometry in Canadian soldiers with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) display several structural brain differences when compared with healthy individuals. However, findings are particularly inconsistent for soldiers with PTSD. Here, we characterized the brain morphometry of 37 soldiers from the Canadian Armed Forces with adulthood war-related PTSD using structural magnetic resonance imaging.

Functional mobility in walking adult population with ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay.

Background: This study aimed to describe lower limbs impairments, balance and activity limitations related to indoor mobility in adult walkers with autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS).

Results: Twenty-five participants were recruited with a mean age of 32.2 (± 10.

An in-home rehabilitation program for the treatment of urinary incontinence symptoms in endometrial cancer survivors: a single-case experimental design study.

Introduction And Hypothesis: There is a high prevalence of urinary incontinence among endometrial cancer survivors. They are also known to present with pelvic floor muscle alterations. Evidence on the effects of conservative interventions for the management of UI is scarce.

Single session compared with multiple sessions of education and exercise for older adults with spinal pain in an advanced practice physiotherapy model of care: protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a single session compared with multiple sessions of education and exercise for older adults with spinal pain treated conservatively in an advanced practice physiotherapy model of care.

Methods And Analysis: In this pragmatic randomised controlled trial, 152 older adults (≥65 years old) with neck or back pain initially referred for a consultation in neurosurgery, but treated conservatively, will be recruited through the advanced practice physiotherapy neurosurgery CareAxis programme in the Montreal region (Quebec, Canada). In the CareAxis programme, older patients with spinal pain are triaged by an advance practice physiotherapist and are offered conservative care and only potential surgical candidates are referred to a neurosurgeon.

Reliability of ultrasound imaging of pelvic floor morphology and function among females who have undergone pelvic radiotherapy.

Aims: To investigate the intra- and inter-rater reliability of two-dimensional (2D) transperineal ultrasound imaging (USI) measures of bladder wall thickness (BWT), urethral length (UL), and parameters related to levator plate length (LP) and transient changes in LP during pelvic floor muscle (PFM) contraction, and on Valsalva in women who received radiation therapy (RT) for treatment of pelvic cancer.

Methods: Twenty women with a history of RT for the treatment of pelvic cancer were assessed independently by two raters on the same day. Five outcomes were assessed for reliability: BWT, UL, and LP at rest (LP-R), during a maximal voluntary contraction of the PFMs (LP-MVC), and during a maximal-effort Valsalva maneuver (LP-MVM).

Direct-access physiotherapy to help manage patients with musculoskeletal disorders in an emergency department: Results of a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: The objective was to evaluate the effects of direct-access physiotherapy on patients presenting with a musculoskeletal disorder (MSKD) to the emergency department (ED) on clinical outcomes and use of health care resources.

Methods: We conducted a randomized controlled trial in an academic ED in Québec City, Canada. We included patients aged 18 to 80 years with minor MSKD.

Wheelchair mobility, motor performance and participation of adult wheelchair users with ARSACS: a cross-sectional study.

Purpose: Although approximately 45% of adults with Autosomal Recessive Spastic Ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS) are permanent wheelchair users, this sub population has been less studied. The purpose of this study was to document wheelchair mobility, motor performance, and participation in a cohort of adult wheelchair users with ARSACS.

Methods: We recruited 36 manual and powered wheelchair users with ARSACS, aged between 34 and 64 years, for this cross-sectional study.