Background: In-shoe pressure redistribution to provide relief of forefoot pain in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is based on assumed links between pressure and pain. However, little is known about the size of the pressure change required to reduce pain or the capacity of other plantar regions to bear increased pressure. Our primary aim was to quantify the plantar pressure pain threshold (PPT) in RA and compare it to age- and gender-matched control participants.
Materials And Methods: This controlled trial involved 10 RA participants and 10 age- and gender-matched control subjects. PPT, measured using a force gauge, and touch sensitivity, measured via Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments, were tested in 19 plantar regions.
Results: RA plantar PPTs were significantly reduced in eight foot regions (p < 0.05) and were more uniform across the plantar surface. Touch sensitivity was not different between groups. Plantar PPT was significantly related to age (p < 0.05) and to touch sensitivity (p < 0.05) in multiple foot regions of the control group but not in RA. PPT was significantly correlated with disease duration (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Plantar PPTs in RA were 60% to 80% of the control group and may be helpful in predicting the amount of pressure reduction needed to relieve pain. This study provides further evidence that RA disturbs normal pain sensory mechanisms.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.3113/FAI.2009.0001 | DOI Listing |
J Clin Med
December 2024
Department of Ophthalmology, Chonnam National University Medical School and Hospital, Gwangju 61469, Republic of Korea.
Sensitivity to ocular irritation varies among individuals, being influenced by clinical, subjective, and biochemical factors. This study aimed to evaluate individual variability in ocular irritation sensitivity, focusing on clinical parameters, pain perception, and tear neuromediator profiles. Sixty female participants aged 20-40 were classified into high-sensitivity and low-sensitivity groups based on their response to an irritant (Tween20).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSensors (Basel)
December 2024
In Situ Devices Center, School of Integrated Circuits, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China.
The rapid advancement of tactile electronic skin (E-skin) has highlighted the effectiveness of incorporating bionic, force-sensitive microstructures in order to enhance sensing performance. Among these, cilia-like microstructures with high aspect ratios, whose inspiration is mammalian hair and the lateral line system of fish, have attracted significant attention for their unique ability to enable E-skin to detect weak signals, even in extreme conditions. Herein, this review critically examines recent progress in the development of cilia-inspired bionic tactile E-skin, with a focus on columnar, conical and filiform microstructures, as well as their fabrication strategies, including template-based and template-free methods.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFElife
January 2025
Department of Biology, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
Dendrites are crucial for receiving information into neurons. Sensory experience affects the structure of these tree-like neurites, which, it is assumed, modifies neuronal function, yet the evidence is scarce, and the mechanisms are unknown. To study whether sensory experience affects dendritic morphology, we use the arborized nociceptor PVD neurons, under natural mechanical stimulation induced by physical contacts between individuals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Public Health
January 2025
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (Campus Charité Mitte), Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Background: In Burkina Faso, nearly half of the population is under 15 years old, and one in four adolescents experience depression. This underscores the critical need to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and youth, empowering them to manage their mental well-being effectively. Comic books offer an engaging approach to health education, yet their effectiveness in addressing mental health remains largely untested.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTrop Med Int Health
January 2025
Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências da Saúde: Infectologia e Medicina Tropical, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine reference points for thermal perception in cutaneous lesions of leprosy, a disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae characterised by hypoesthesia in skin lesions due to nerve and Schwann cell infection. Early diagnosis is essential to control transmission and effectively treat the disease.
Methods: Quantitative thermal testing (QTT) has been proposed as a valuable tool for early detection of the disease, initiation of treatment, and monitoring of nerve damage.
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