Knee osteoarthritis patients assessed during walking for ankle inversion movement discrimination sensitivity.

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a common musculoskeletal condition that affects dynamic balance control and increases the risk of falling during walking. However, the mechanisms underlying this are still unclear. Diminished ankle proprioception during walking has been found to be related to fear of falling in older adults, with a gender difference in incidence of falling.

Voluntary postural sway control and mobility in adults with low back pain.

Introduction: Low back pain (LBP) is associated with altered somatosensory perception, which is involved in both involuntary and voluntary control of posture. Currently, there is a lack of methods and tools for assessing somatosensory acuity in patients with LBP. The purpose of this study was (1) to assess the reliability of the sway discrimination apparatus (SwayDA) (2) to evaluate the differences in somatosensory acuity between patients with LBP and pain-free individuals, and (3) to examine relationships between somatosensory acuity, severity of LBP, and mobility in patients with LBP.

Physical and Psychosocial Characteristics of Current Child Dancers and Nondancers With Systemic Joint Hypermobility: A Descriptive Analysis.

Study Design Cross-sectional study. Background The effect of current participation in dance training on joint pain and instability, fatigue, and quality of life is unknown. Objectives To examine differences in joint pain, instability, gross motor skills, nonmusculoskeletal systemic manifestations, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and fatigue between children with joint hypermobility syndrome/Ehlers-Danlos syndrome-hypermobility type (JHS/EDS-HT) who currently undertake formal dance training and those who do not.

Sex Differences in Drop Landing: More Apparent in Recreational Surfers Than in Competitive Surfers or Nonsurfers.

We suspected that the observed inconsistency of sex differences in drop-landing motor skills might be due to the confounding factor of prior experience. Thus, in this study, we explored the role of experience in shaping male and female surfboard riders' motor skill kinematics during drop landings while surfboard riding. We recruited 42 participants (21 females and 21 males) from three groups of surfing experience levels (competitive surfers, recreational surfers, and nonsurfers), each equally comprising seven males and seven females.

Features that exacerbate fatigue severity in joint hypermobility syndrome/Ehlers-Danlos syndrome - hypermobility type.

Aim: To assess the prevalence, severity and impact of fatigue on individuals with joint hypermobility syndrome (JHS)/Ehlers-Danlos syndrome - hypermobility type (EDS-HT) and establish potential determinants of fatigue severity in this population.

Methods: Questionnaires on symptoms and signs related to fatigue, quality of life, mental health, physical activity participation and sleep quality were completed by people with JHS/EDS-HT recruited through two social media sites. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of fatigue in this population.

The natural history of children with joint hypermobility syndrome and Ehlers-Danlos hypermobility type: a longitudinal cohort study.

Objectives: The objective of the manuscript was to describe the natural history of complaints and disability in children diagnosed with joint hypermobility syndrome (JHS)/Ehlers-Danlos-hypermobility type (EDS-HT) and to identify the constructs that underlie functional decline.

Methods: One hundred and one JHS/EDS-HT children were observed over 3 years and assessed at three time points on the following: functional impairments, quality of life, connective tissue laxity, muscle function, postural control and musculoskeletal and multi-systemic complaints. Cluster analysis was performed to identify subgroups in severity.

Quality of life prediction in children with joint hypermobility syndrome.

Aims: To assess the child- and parent-reported health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of children with joint hypermobility syndrome (JHS), to compare these with other chronic paediatric conditions and to determine whether symptoms experienced by children with JHS can predict their HRQOL.

Methods: Eighty-nine children with JHS and one of their parents completed the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 Generic Core Scale, the Multidimensional Fatigue Scale and the Pediatric Pain Questionnaire.

Proprioceptive acuity into knee hypermobile range in children with joint hypermobility syndrome.

Background: Children with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome (JHS) have reduced knee joint proprioceptive acuity compared to peers. Altered proprioception at end of range in individuals with JHS is hypothesised to contribute to recurrent joint injuries and instability. This study aims to provide the first objective comparison of functional knee joint proprioceptive acuity in hyperextension range compared to early flexion range in children with JHS.

Inter-rater reliability of physiotherapists using the Pirani scoring system for clubfoot: comparison with a modified five-point scale.

This study examines inter-rater reliability between physiotherapists using the Pirani scoring system for clubfoot, and whether the addition of two scale points to give a modified five-point severity scale improves reliability. A total of 65 infant feet were assessed by two raters, with 21 different rater combinations used. The Pirani scoring system was found to be a reliable assessment tool when used by physiotherapists to score clubfoot, with a minimum of fair to good inter-rater reliability demonstrated across all clinical signs.

Shoulder proprioception is not related to throwing speed or accuracy in elite adolescent male baseball players.

Understanding factors that influence throwing speed and accuracy is critical to performance in baseball. Shoulder proprioception has been implicated in the injury risk of throwing athletes, but no such link has been established with performance outcomes. The purpose of this study was to describe any relationship between shoulder proprioception acuity and throwing speed or accuracy.

Joint hypermobility syndrome subclassification in paediatrics: a factor analytic approach.

Objective: To determine if exploratory factor analysis can identify subtypes comprising recognisable clinical patterns of the presenting signs and symptoms of children with joint hypermobility syndrome (JHS).

Patients: Eighty-nine children with JHS aged 6-16 years.

Methods: Twelve tests comprising anthropometric, musculoskeletal and functional assessments were conducted.

Protein conformational modulation by photons: a mechanism for laser treatment effects.

Responsiveness to low-level laser treatment (LLTT) at a wavelength of 450-910 nm has established it as an effective treatment of medical, veterinary and dental chronic pain, chronic inflammation conditions (arthritis and macular degeneration), wound repair, and lymphoedema, yet the mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of LLLT remain unclear. However, there is now sufficient evidence from recent research to propose an integrated model of LLLT action. The hypothesis presented in this paper is that external applications of photons (through laser at an appropriate dose) modulates the nervous system through an integrated mechanism.

Exercise in children with joint hypermobility syndrome and knee pain: a randomised controlled trial comparing exercise into hypermobile versus neutral knee extension.

Background: Knee pain in children with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome (JHS) is traditionally managed with exercise, however the supporting evidence for this is scarce. No trial has previously examined whether exercising to neutral or into the hypermobile range affects outcomes. This study aimed to (i) determine if a physiotherapist-prescribed exercise programme focused on knee joint strength and control is effective in reducing knee pain in children with JHS compared to no treatment, and (ii) whether the range in which these exercises are performed affects outcomes.

The therapeutic alliance between clinicians and patients predicts outcome in chronic low back pain.

Background: The impact of the relationship (therapeutic alliance) between patients and physical therapists on treatment outcome in the rehabilitation of patients with chronic low back pain (LBP) has not been previously investigated.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the therapeutic alliance between physical therapists and patients with chronic LBP predicts clinical outcomes.

Design: This was a retrospective observational study nested within a randomized controlled trial.

Liking and response latency in teammate identification: processing delays below conscious awareness?

Success in fast-ball sports relies on many factors which interact at both movement and cognitive levels. Players must recognize their teammates and decide whether to pass the ball to create or take advantage of scoring affordances. Previous research has shown athletes can identify teammates from brief visual displays during fast-ball sports and this is related to the amount of time individuals train together.

Discrimination of amount of spinal flexion for movements made with and without vision after lumbar disc replacement.

Discrimination of differences between small lumbar flexion movements made when standing may differ depending on whether vision is available. Dependence on general vision during trunk movements may be increased following surgery, in which an intervertebral disc is replaced with a prosthetic disc. This study investigated whether the availability of vision changed discrimination of small differences in lumbar forward flexion movement when standing for patients with lumbar disc replacement and healthy peers.

Generalized joint hypermobility and risk of lower limb joint injury during sport: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

Background: Generalized joint hypermobility is a highly prevalent condition commonly associated with joint injuries. The current literature has conflicting reports of the risk of joint injury in hypermobile sporting participants compared with their nonhypermobile peers. Systematic reviews have not been conclusive and no meta-analysis has been performed.

Comparison of lumbar proprioception as measured in unrestrained standing in individuals with disc replacement, with low back pain, and without low back pain.

Study Design: Cross-sectional laboratory study.

Objective: To determine whether individuals with spinal pain and those who have undergone spinal surgery have difficulty discriminating small movement differences using a spinal proprioception test for active flexion movements.

Background: Structures contributing to proprioception may be affected during disc replacement surgery.

Execution and outcome differences between passes to the left and right made by first-grade rugby union players.

Objectives: To examine bilateral ball-passing skills whilst running amongst first-grade rugby union footballers.

Design: Within-group design

Setting: NSW Rugby Training facilities, Moore Park, Sydney.

Participants: One international player used as a case study and twenty, first grade rugby union players.

Reduced humeral torsion predicts throwing-related injury in adolescent baseballers.

The amount of torsion in the humerus is determined by both genetic and activity-related factors, and affects the external rotation range of motion available at the shoulder. Previous research has shown athletes participating in throwing sports to have a greater amount of humeral retrotorsion in their dominant arm. The purpose of this study was to investigate the predictive ability of both the genetic and activity-related aspects of humeral torsion regarding throwing-related injury.

Effect of anterior cruciate ligament injury and reconstruction on proprioceptive acuity of knee rotation in the transverse plane.

Background: Studies assessing proprioceptive acuity in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)-deficient knees have only considered proprioception for knee movements in the sagittal plane rather than in the transverse plane (ie, rotation), despite the fact that the ACL plays a critical role in knee rotational stability and that the ACL is injured almost exclusively with a rotation mechanism. Therefore a test of proprioception is needed that involves movements similar to the mechanism of injury, in this case, rotation.

Purpose: To determine whether proprioceptive acuity in rotation changes after ACL injury and reconstruction, and to examine differences in proprioceptive acuity, range, laxity, and activity level among injured knees, contralateral knees, and healthy controls.

Sports participation and humeral torsion.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Objective: To examine differences between arms in humeral torsion in adult and adolescent throwing and nonthrowing athletes, and nonathletic adults.

Background: It is hypothesized that humeral retrotorsion develops by, and is beneficial for, throwing.

Junior football players' classification of runners as their teammates from 400-msec. video clips.

It was hypothesized that a specialized gait recognition skill enables humans to distinguish the gait of familiar from unfamiliar individuals, and that this may have relevance in team sports. Runners seen for less than half a second can be classified as teammates or not by adult players, so it may be asked whether this skill would also be demonstrated by young team players. In the current study, junior football players (M age = 10.

Swing kinematics in skilled male golfers following putting practice.

Study Design: Control laboratory study consisting of preintervention and postintervention measurements.

Objective: To determine the effects of a putting practice session on the kinematics of full golf swings made by skilled male golfers.

Background: Skilled golfers perform putting practice for prolonged periods.

Observation of high and low passive ankle flexibility in stair descent.

Able-bodied people from the two extremes of the distribution of passive dorsiflexion exhibit biomechanical differences when descending stairs. Whether physical therapists could judge accurately the amount of ankle flexibility from observation of stair descent was examined with physical therapists (20 neurological 20 cardiothoracic) and 20 students. Subjects were 18 able-bodied men with high or low passive dorsiflexion.