The benefits of virtual learning abroad programs for higher education students: A phenomenological research study.

Background: Higher education institutions offer in-country learning abroad programs to provide healthcare students with the opportunity to gain the intercultural and global competencies they need to work in a globally interconnected world. During the Covid-19 pandemic, institutions offered virtual learning abroad programs as an alternative to the in-country programs, however, little is known about whether they provide comparable benefits to students.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate, and identify, the benefits gained by higher education healthcare students through their participation in a virtual learning abroad program.

Development and validation of an assessment tool for higher education learning abroad programs: A qualitative Delphi study.

Background: Higher education learning abroad programs provide many benefits to healthcare students. However, inadequate preparation prior to their international travel, and misdirected motivations for their participation, can jeopardise the benefits and increase the risks. While it is pivotal to objectively evaluate pre-departure student preparation and the impact the programs have on students, existing assessment questionnaires fail to inform these aspects.

The Relationship Between Corticomotor Reorganization and Acute Pain Severity: A Randomized, Controlled Study Using Rapid Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Mapping.

Objective: Although acute pain has been shown to reduce corticomotor excitability, it remains unknown whether this response resolves over time or is related to symptom severity. Furthermore, acute pain research has relied upon data acquired from the cranial "hotspot," which do not provide valuable information regarding reorganization, such as changes to the distribution of a painful muscle's representation within M1. Using a novel, rapid transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) mapping method, this study aimed to 1) explore the temporal profile and variability of corticomotor reorganization in response to acute pain and 2) determine whether individual patterns of corticomotor reorganization are associated with differences in pain, sensitivity, and somatosensory organization.

The impact of learning abroad programs in developing countries: A scoping review.

Objectives: An increasing number of higher education healthcare students from developed countries are undertaking short-term learning abroad programs in developing countries. However, sociocultural differences between the students and the communities could lead to unintended, possibly negative consequences for the community. The objective of this review was to explore what is known about the impact of learning abroad programs undertaken by healthcare students on the communities in the developing countries who host them.

Corticomotor reorganization during short-term visuomotor training in the lower back: A randomized controlled study.

Introduction: Accumulating evidence suggests that motor skill training is associated with structural and functional reorganization of the primary motor cortex. However, previous studies have focussed primarily upon the upper limb, and it is unclear whether comparable reorganization occurs following training of other regions, such as the lower back. Although this holds important implications for rehabilitation, no studies have examined corticomotor adaptations following short-term motor training in the lower back.

Fear of movement is associated with corticomotor depression in response to acute experimental muscle pain.

Acute musculoskeletal pain is associated with reductions in corticomotor output that persists even after pain resolves. Factors that contribute to corticomotor depression following acute pain are unknown. This study examined whether psychological factors, including pain catastrophising, kinesiophobia, and implicit theories of pain, were associated with corticomotor depression following acute experimental muscle pain.

Effect of sustained experimental muscle pain on joint position sense.

Introduction: Joint position sense (JPS) is impaired in clinical musculoskeletal pain conditions, but when this impairment develops in the transition from initial to prolonged pain is not known.

Objectives: This study assessed whether progressively developing sustained experimentally induced muscle pain impacts JPS in healthy individuals.

Methods: Twenty-eight healthy individuals received injection of nerve growth factor (NGF) into the right extensor carpi radialis brevis muscle on days 0 and 2 to induce sustained pain and hyperalgesia.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation of the primary motor cortex expedites recovery in the transition from acute to sustained experimental pain: a randomised, controlled study.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the primary motor cortex (M1) is increasingly being investigated as a means of alleviating chronic pain. However, rTMS interventions are typically initiated once pain has already become chronic and maladaptive patterns of neural activity are likely to have been established. A critical question is whether M1 rTMS applied soon after pain onset can prevent the development of maladaptive neural activity and promote recovery.

Motor adaptation varies between individuals in the transition to sustained pain.

Musculoskeletal pain is associated with altered motor control that, despite short-term benefit, is hypothesised to have long-term consequences, contributing to the development of chronic pain. However, data on how motor control is altered when pain is sustained beyond a transient event are scarce. Here, we investigated motor adaptation, and its relationship with corticomotor excitability, in the transition to sustained muscle pain.

Latin American and Caribbean consensus on noninvasive central nervous system neuromodulation for chronic pain management (LAC-NIN-CP).

Introduction: Chronic pain (CP) is highly prevalent and generally undertreated health condition. Noninvasive brain stimulation may contribute to decrease pain intensity and influence other aspects related to CP.

Objective: To provide consensus-based recommendations for the use of noninvasive brain stimulation in clinical practice.

The effect of implicit theories of pain on pain and disability in people with chronic low back pain.

Background: Implicit theories of pain represent a socio-cognitive mechanism linked to important coping, emotional, and expressive reactions to chronic pain. Evidence suggests that chronic low back pain (CLBP) patients who hold an incremental theory of pain (i.e.

The influence of kinesiology tape colour on performance and corticomotor activity in healthy adults: a randomised crossover controlled trial.

Background: There exists conflicting evidence regarding the impact of kinesiology tape on performance and muscle function. One variable that may account for disparities in the findings of previous studies is the colour of the tape applied. Colour is hypothesised to influence sporting performance through modulation of arousal and aggression.

The type and pain provoking nature of exercise prescribed for low back pain: A survey of Australian health professionals.

Objectives: To explore the type of exercise prescribed by Australian health professionals for LBP, and whether the exercises prescribed are pain-free or into pain.

Methods: A survey of physiotherapists and exercise physiologists was conducted from all states/territories in Australia. The survey contained two chronic LBP vignettes with different pain mechanisms (dominant nociceptive or central sensitisation pain) and one acute LBP vignette.

The reliability and validity of rapid transcranial magnetic stimulation mapping.

Background: Traditional transcranial magnetic stimulation mapping involves systematically delivering stimuli over a predefined grid. The pseudorandom walk method seeks to improve map acquisition times by abandoning the grid in favour of delivering stimuli randomly over a given area.

Objectives: To i) determine the minimum interstimulus interval (ISI) required for reliable mapping outcomes within and between sessions using the pseudorandom walk method and ii) assess the validity of the pseudorandom walk method by testing its equivalence with traditional mapping.

Anticipatory and compensatory postural adjustments in people with low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background Context: Despite altered anticipatory (APAs) and compensatory postural adjustments (CPAs) being hypothesized to contribute to the onset and persistence of low back pain (LBP), results from studies comparing people with and without LBP are conflicting.

Purpose: This systematic review aimed to determine whether APAs or CPAs are altered in the presence of acute and chronic LBP.

Study Design: A systematic review of studies was carried out.

Shoulder Taping and Neuromuscular Control.

Context:   Scapular taping can offer clinical benefit to some patients with shoulder pain; however, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Understanding these mechanisms may guide the development of treatment strategies for managing neuromusculoskeletal shoulder conditions.

Objective:   To examine the mechanisms underpinning the benefits of scapular taping.

Improved compensatory postural adjustments of the deep abdominals following exercise in people with chronic low back pain.

The purpose of this study was to determine if 8 weeks of exercise affects motor control in people with chronic low back pain (CLBP), measured by anticipatory (APAs) and compensatory postural adjustments (CPAs). APAs and CPAs were measured prior to and following 8 weeks in two groups of people with CLBP: an exercise group (n=12) who attended three exercise sessions per week for 8 weeks; and a non-exercise control group (n=12) who were advised to continue their usual activities for the duration of the study. APAs and CPAs were recorded during unilateral arm flexion, bilaterally from rectus abdominis (RA), transverse abdominis/internal oblique (TA/IO), and erector spinae (ES) via surface electromyography.

Temporal and spatial characteristics of post-silent period electromyographic bursting in low back muscles: comparison between persons with and without low back pain.

Unlabelled: Purpose/aim: Recently, a novel measure of cortical disinhibition was identified using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This measure, described as post-silent period electromyographic (EMG) bursting, may inform on the corticomotor control of movement in health and disease; however, it has not been investigated for muscles outside the hand or in musculoskeletal conditions. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the temporal and spatial characteristics of "EMG bursting" in individuals with and without low back pain (LBP).

Primary Motor Cortex Organization Is Altered in Persistent Patellofemoral Pain.

Objective: Reorganization of the primary motor cortex (M1) may be a feature of persistent patellofemoral pain (PFP), but no studies have investigated M1 organization in this condition. Here we aimed to examine the organization of the M1 representation of the quadriceps muscles in people with PFP and healthy controls.

Design: Using a cross-sectional design, the M1 representation of the rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, and vastus medialis was mapped using transcranial magnetic stimulation in 11 individuals with PFP and 11 controls.

Determining the Optimal Number of Stimuli per Cranial Site during Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Mapping.

The delivery of five stimuli to each cranial site is recommended during transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) mapping. However, this time-consuming practice restricts the use of TMS mapping beyond the research environment. While reducing the number of stimuli administered to each cranial site may improve efficiency and decrease physiological demand, doing so may also compromise the procedure's validity.

The number of stimuli required to reliably assess corticomotor excitability and primary motor cortical representations using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS): a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive means by which to assess the structure and function of the central nervous system. Current practices involve the administration of multiple stimuli over target areas of a participant's scalp. Decreasing the number of stimuli delivered during TMS assessments would improve time efficiency and decrease participant demand.

Peripheral electrical stimulation increases corticomotor excitability and enhances the rate of visuomotor adaptation.

Peripheral electrical stimulation (PES) modulates corticomotor excitability but its effect on motor performance has not been thoroughly investigated. The purpose of this study was to assess whether increases and/or decreases in corticomotor excitability, induced by PES, influenced motor performance using a visuomotor adaptation task. Three PES interventions (motor stimulation, sensory stimulation or sham) were delivered to the first dorsal interosseous (FDI) in 30 healthy participants matched for age, gender and handedness.

Anticipatory and compensatory postural adjustments in people with low back pain: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Anticipatory (APAs) and compensatory (CPAs) postural adjustments are organised by the central nervous system (CNS) and serve to control postural perturbations. Ineffective APAs and CPAs have been hypothesised to contribute to the persistence of symptoms and disability in people with low back pain (LBP). Despite two decades of research, there is no systematic review investigating APAs and CPAs in people with LBP.

Hand therapy versus corticosteroid injections in the treatment of de Quervain's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Study Design: Systematic review with meta-analysis.

Introduction: Although corticosteroid injections are often cited as best practice in the treatment of de Quervain's disease, no reviews have compared their effectiveness to a multimodal definition of hand therapy.

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of corticosteroid injections with that of i) hand therapy alone and ii) combined hand therapy/corticosteroid injection approaches in the treatment of de Quervain's disease.

Organisation and function of the primary motor cortex in chronic pain: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Primary motor cortical (M1) adaptation in the form of altered organisation and function is hypothesised to underpin motor dysfunction observed in chronic pain. The aim of this review is to assess the evidence for altered M1 organisation and function in chronic pain.

Methods And Analysis: Systematic review and meta-analysis.