Publications by authors named "Thorvaldur S Palsson"

Background: Pain is impacted by bio-psycho-social factors and is closely related to disability and poor quality of life. Therefore, a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) is needed to capture these aspects effectively. The Short Form Brief Pain Inventory (SF-BPI) serves this purpose as a tool for pain assessment.

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  • - This study investigates how to reliably assess smoothness, range of motion (ROM), and head repositioning accuracy (HRA) in individuals, focusing on improving measurement methods.
  • - Thirty healthy participants were tested using different speeds and conditions for head rotations, with a focus on consistency of results across multiple attempts.
  • - Findings suggest that normalizing movement metrics, especially using a metronome, improves reliability, and that performing 2-3 repetitions is sufficient for reliable measurements, minimizing the need for extensive testing.
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  • Low back pain (LBP) is a common issue globally, and physiotherapists play a key role in its assessment and treatment, but their understanding of effective management practices is not well documented.
  • A study involving 1350 Spanish physiotherapists assessed their knowledge of evidence-based LBP management through a pre-test and post-test after an e-learning course, revealing significant gaps in their understanding of certain treatment aspects.
  • Following the e-learning course, participants improved their knowledge, particularly those who had graduated recently, indicating that ongoing education is important for bridging gaps in practice knowledge among physiotherapists.
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Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the effect of sex on regional and widespread pain sensitivity following acute bouts of stretching and to investigate the acute effect of stretching on regional and widespread pain sensitivity following stretching.

Methods: 73 healthy adults (36 females; mean age 25.6 ± 6.

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Objectives: This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of a new device called MOTI for measuring balance by comparing its performance that with of the gold-standard force platform.

Methods: The study involved collecting data from both devices in dual- and single-leg standing positions with eyes open and closed and using statistical measures to compare their performance.

Results: The results showed that MOTI can accurately measure balance during dual-leg standing tasks but has poor to moderate performance during single-leg standing tasks.

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Background: Delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is common after unaccustomed exercises and can restrict performance if intense physical activities are performed while the muscle is still sore. This study aimed to evaluate the recovery process following exercise-induced DOMS over a seven-day period by evaluating sensory, functional, and electromyographic parameters.

Methods: Twenty-four healthy males participated in four experimental sessions (Day-0, Day-2, Day-4, Day-7).

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Background: Patients with spinal pain often exhibit movement limitations and altered motor control, which can be challenging to measure accurately in clinical practice. Inertial measurement sensors present a promising new opportunity to develop valid, low-cost, and easy-to-use methods for assessing and monitoring spinal motion in a clinical setting.

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the agreement of an inertial sensor and a 3D camera system for assessing the range of motion (ROM) and quality of movement (QOM) in head and trunk single-plane movements.

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Background: Personality traits are associated with pain-related beliefs and coping strategies, and different chronic conditions are linked through specific personality profiles. This highlights the importance of having valid and reliable measures of personality traits for use in clinical and research settings when assessing patients in chronic pain.

Purpose: To translate and cross-culturally adapt the 10-item Big Five Inventory (BFI-10) into Danish.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the reliability of quantitative sensory tests (QSTs) over short (2 weeks) and long (6 months) periods to help clinicians assess patients' pain sensitivity.
  • Twenty healthy women participated in the study, undergoing multiple tests measuring pressure pain thresholds, pain tolerance, conditioned pain modulation, and referred pain.
  • Results indicated that pressure pain thresholds and pain tolerance showed excellent reliability, while conditioned pain modulation demonstrated variability, suggesting it may not be a stable indicator for assessing pain sensitivity over time.
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Introduction: Sitting posture may contribute to spinal pain. Effects of postures on pain, sensitivity and muscle activity during computer tasks were investigated.

Methods: Twenty-five healthy participants, seated at a workstation without backrest, completed four, 15-min typing tasks: A)Upright with forearm-support; B)Upright without forearm-support; C)Slumped with forearm-support; D)Slumped without forearm-support.

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  • - The study aimed to create an Evidence and Gap Map (EGM) to identify intervention categories and outcomes in chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain research since there are currently none in that field.
  • - Researchers analyzed 4,299 systematic reviews from various databases, ultimately including 457, with most rated as low-quality; physical interventions like exercise therapy were most common, while interdisciplinary approaches were rare.
  • - The findings highlighted a significant lack of high-quality research in chronic MSK pain and emphasized the necessity for future studies to consider a more comprehensive biopsychosocial approach.
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Objectives: Patient and stakeholder engagements in research have increasingly gained attention in healthcare and healthcare-related research. A common and rigorous approach to establish research priorities based on input from people and stakeholders is the James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnership (JLA-PSP). The aim of this study was to establish research priorities for chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain by engaging with people living with chronic MSK pain, relatives to people living with chronic MSK pain, healthcare professionals (HCP), and researchers working with chronic MSK pain.

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Background: Widespread pain partially depends upon sensitization of central pain mechanisms. However, mechanisms controlling pain distribution are not completely known. The present study sought to assess skin temperature variations in the area of experimentally-induced pain and potential sex differences.

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Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a posture-cueing shirt on sitting posture during a functional task.

Methods: Thirty healthy male participants were seated at a standardized workstation while completing 3 laptop writing tasks of 15-minute duration wearing either a posture-cueing shirt, a compression shirt, or no shirt. Posture was assessed based on photos taken at minutes 1 and 15 into the writing task from which the head and shoulder angles were measured and extracted for analysis.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to develop a multifactorial, self-report questionnaire: Prevent for Work Questionnaire (P4Wq). The questionnaire is intended for screening for risk factors in work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs).

Design: Data were collected from otherwise healthy workers employed in three service areas at a specialist hospital in Italy: healthcare, administration and ancillary services.

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Spinal pain in adults is a significant burden, from an individual and societal perspective. According to epidemiologic data, spinal pain is commonly found in children and adolescents, where evidence emerging over the past decade has demonstrated that spinal pain in adults can, in many cases, be traced back to childhood or adolescence. Nevertheless, very little focus has been on how to best manage spinal pain in younger age groups.

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Introduction: Work-related musculoskeletal (MSK) pain is a highly prevalent condition and one of the main contributors to disability and loss of work capacity. Current approaches to the management and prevention of work-related MSK pain do not consistently integrate current evidence-based knowledge and seem to be outdated. The Prevent4Work (P4W) Project aims to collect and spread evidence-based information to improve the management and prevention of work-related MSK pain.

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Objectives: The effect of stretching on joint range of motion is well documented, and although sensory perception has significance for changes in the tolerance to stretch following stretching the underlining mechanisms responsible for these changes is insufficiently understood. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of endogenous pain inhibitory mechanisms on stretch tolerance and to investigate the relationship between range of motion and changes in pain sensitivity.

Methods: Nineteen healthy males participated in this randomized, repeated-measures crossover study, conducted on 2 separate days.

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Objectives: Clinical decisions rely on a patient's ability to recall and report their pain experience. Monitoring pain in real-time (momentary pain) may reduce recall errors and optimize the clinical decision-making process. Tracking momentary pain can provide insights into detailed changes in pain intensity and distribution (area and location) over time.

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Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the pain-sensory profile of patients with whiplash-associated disorders (WADs) prior and post 2 weeks of standardized rehabilitation and after a 6-month follow-up.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-two WAD participants (grade II; 14 women) and 22 sex-matched and age-matched healthy pain-free controls were enrolled. Pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) were assessed at local and distal muscles.

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Background: Endogenous pain inhibitory mechanisms are known to reduce pain intensity, but whether they influence the size and distribution of pain referral is unclear. This study aimed to determine if referred pain is reduced by applying a remote, conditioning painful stimulus.

Methods: Twenty-four healthy men participated in this randomized, crossover study with a control and conditioning session.

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Objective: This study aims to define appropriate domains and items for the development of a self-administered questionnaire to assess the risk of developing work-related musculoskeletal disorder (WMSD) and the risk of its progression to chronicity.

Design: Literature review and survey study.

Setting And Participants: A literature review and a two-round interview with 15 experts in musculoskeletal pain were performed to identify the available domains for WMSD assessment.

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Objective: Altered balance in nociception in response to noxious stimuli is commonly reported in chronic low back pain (LBP). However, it is unclear whether an improvement in the clinical presentation is contingent on a reduction in pain sensitivity. This study investigated whether the quantitative sensory testing (QST) profile changes in people undergoing rehabilitation for LBP.

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Objective: To investigate the pain referral area (number of pixels) and extent (vector length) as elicited from increasing intensities of pressure-induced pain at the shoulder.

Design: Cross-sectional design.

Setting: Clinical laboratory setting.

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Background: Digital pain mapping allows for remote and ecological momentary assessment in patients over multiple time points spanning days to months. Frequent ecological assessments may reveal tendencies and fluctuations more clearly and provide insights into the trajectory of a patient's pain.

Objective: The primary aim of this study is to remotely map and track the intensity and distribution of pain and discomfort (eg, burning, aching, and tingling) in patients with nonmalignant spinal referred pain over 12 weeks using a web-based app for digital pain mapping.

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