scholarly journals Mechanical Plantar Foot Stimulation in Parkinson′s Disease: A Scoping Review

Diseases ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Brognara ◽  
Omar Cauli
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Gait Parameters ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Plantar Stimulation

Background: Parkinson′s disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease in older individuals. Neurorehabilitation-based interventions such as those improving gait are crucial for a holistic approach and to limit falls. Several studies have recently shown that mechanical plantar foot stimulation is a beneficial intervention for improving gait impairment in PD patients. The objective of this scoping review is to evaluate the beneficial effects of this stimulation on gait parameters, and to analyse protocols of foot stimulation and other effects in non-motor symptoms. Relevant articles were searched in the Medline database using Pubmed and Scopus, using the primary search terms ‘foot stimulation’ OR ‘plantar stimulation’ AND ‘Parkinson’s disease*’. Several protocols have been used for mechanical plantar foot stimulation (ranging from medical devices to textured insoles). The gait parameters that have been shown to be improved are stride length and walking speed. The beneficial effects are achieved after both acute and repeated plantar foot stimulation. Beneficial effects are observed in other organs and systems, such as muscle activation, brain connectivity, cardiovascular control in the central nervous system, and the release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and cortisol in blood added evidence about this intervention’s impact on brain function. Mechanical plantar foot stimulation is a safe and effective add-on treatment able for improving gait impairments in PD patients during the L-dopa off state. Randomized and controlled clinical trials to study its eventual potentiating effect with different pharmacotherapy regimens are warranted.

The Cognitive Mechanisms in Music Listening Interventions for Pain: A Scoping Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Howlin ◽  
Brendan Rooney
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Evaluation Studies ◽  
Music Listening ◽  
Cognitive Mechanisms ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Individual Agency ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Music Selection

Abstract Music interventions have been introduced in a range of pain management contexts, yet considerable inconsistencies have been identified across evaluation studies. These inconsistencies have been attributed to a lack of clarity around the prospective cognitive mechanisms of action underlying such interventions. The current systematic scoping review was conducted to examine the theoretical rationales provided in the literature for introducing music listening interventions (MLIs) in pain contexts. 3 search terms (music, listening, and pain) were used in four electronic databases, and 75 articles were included for analysis. Content analysis was used to identify that more intensive listening schedules were associated with chronic and cancer pain compared with procedural pain. The degree to which patients had a choice over the music selection could be categorized into 1 of 5 levels. Thematic synthesis was then applied to develop 5 themes that describe the cognitive mechanisms involved in MLIs for pain. These mechanisms were brought together to build the Cognitive Vitality Model, which emphasizes the role of individual agency in mediating the beneficial effects of music listening through the processes of Meaning-Making, Enjoyment, and Musical Integration. Finally, content analysis was used to demonstrate that only a small proportion of studies were explicitly designed to examine the cognitive mechanisms underlying MLIs and we have suggested ways to improve future practice and empirical research. We call on researchers to design and evaluate MLIs in line with the Cognitive Vitality Model of music listening interventions for pain.

scholarly journals Sensory Profile of Adults with Reduced Food Intake and the Potential Roles of Nutrition and Physical Activity Interventions

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1120-1125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Eve Mathieu ◽  
Ryan E R Reid ◽  
Neil A King
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Food Intake ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Sensory Profile ◽  
Sensory Response ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Physical Activity Interventions ◽  
Nutrition And Physical Activity ◽  
Sensory Training

ABSTRACT The sensory profile, referring to sight, smell, taste, hearing, and touch, plays an essential role in optimizing the habitual intake of energy and macronutrients. However, specific populations, such as older adults, are known to have impaired energy intake. In this paper, the relevance of sensory impairments in this older population is described, and the extent to which nutritional and physical activity interventions can modulate these sensory responses when food intake is insufficient is explored. With aging, all senses deteriorate, and in most cases, such deteriorations diminish the nutritional response. The only exception is sight, for which both positive and negative impacts on nutritional response have been reported. From a prevention perspective, nutritional interventions have been understudied, and to date, only hearing is known to be positively affected by a good nutritional profile. In comparison, physical activity has been more frequently studied in this context, and is linked to an improved preservation of 4 senses. Regarding treatment, very few studies have directly targeted sensory training, and the focus of research has tended to be on nutrition and physical activity intervention. Sensory training, and nutritional and physical activity treatments all have beneficial effects on the senses. In the future, researchers should focus on exploring gaps in the literature specifically concerning prevention, treatment, and sensory response to understand how to improve the efficacy of current approaches. In order to maintain sensory acuity and recover from sensory impairment, the current state of knowledge supports the importance of improving nutritional habits as well as physical activity early on in life. A combined approach, linking a detailed lifestyle profile with the assessment of numerous senses and one or more interventional approaches (nutrition, physical activity, sensory training, etc.), would be required to identify effective strategies to improve the nutritional state of older individuals.

scholarly journals Scoping review protocol: the use of telemedicine in providing opioid agonist treatment and related psychosocial supports

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. e040556
Author(s):  
Des Crowley ◽  
Robyn Homeniuk ◽  
Ide Delargy
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Psychosocial Support ◽  
Descriptive Analysis ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Opioid Use ◽  
Opioid Agonist ◽  
Opioid Agonist Treatment ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Medical Librarian ◽  
The Cochrane Library

IntroductionThe global opioid-related disease burden is significant. Opioid agonist treatment (OAT) can be effective in reducing illicit opioid use and fatal overdose, and improving multiple health and social outcomes. Despite evidence for its effectiveness, there are significant deficits in OAT globally. COVID-19 has required rapid adaptation of remote models of healthcare. Telemedicine is not used routinely in OAT, and little is known about the current levels of use and effectiveness. The objective of this review is to describe models of telemedicine and their efficacy.Methods and analysisThis scoping review uses the review methodology described by Arksey and O’Malley and adapted by Levac et al. The search strategy developed by the medical librarian at the Irish College of General Practitioners in conjunction with the research team will involve five databases (PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, PsycInfo and OpenGrey) and the hand searching of reference lists. A limited initial search of two databases will be completed to refine search terms, followed by a second comprehensive search using newly refined search terms of all databases and finally hand searching references of included studies. To be included, studies must report on remote ways of providing OAT (including assessment, induction and monitoring) or related psychosocial support; be published in English after 2010. Two researchers will independently screen titles, abstracts and full-text articles considered for inclusion. Data will be extracted onto an agreed template and will undergo a descriptive analysis of the contextual or process-oriented data and simple quantitative analysis using descriptive statistics.Ethics and disseminationResearch ethics approval is not required for this scoping review. The results of this scoping review will inform the development of a national remote model of OAT. The results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at relevant conferences.

Oral and Laryngeal Diadochokinesis Across the Life Span: A Scoping Review of Methods, Reference Data, and Clinical Applications

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-50
Author(s):  
Ray D. Kent ◽  
Yunjung Kim ◽  
Li-mei Chen
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Repetition Rate ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Clinical Value ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Syllable Repetition ◽  
Rate Maximum ◽  
Laryngeal Diadochokinesis ◽  
Study Participants

Purpose: The aim of this study was to conduct a scoping review of research on oral and laryngeal diadochokinesis (DDK) in children and adults, either typically developing/developed or with a clinical diagnosis. Method: Searches were conducted with PubMed/MEDLINE, Google Scholar, CINAHL, and legacy sources in retrieved articles. Search terms included the following: DDK, alternating motion rate, maximum repetition rate, sequential motion rate, and syllable repetition rate. Results: Three hundred sixty articles were retrieved and included in the review. Data source tables for children and adults list the number and ages of study participants, DDK task, and language(s) spoken. Cross-sectional data for typically developing children and typically developed adults are compiled for the monosyllables /pʌ/, /tʌ/, and /kʌ/; the trisyllable /pʌtʌkʌ/; and laryngeal DDK. In addition, DDK results are summarized for 26 disorders or conditions. Discussion: A growing number of multidisciplinary reports on DDK affirm its role in clinical practice and research across the world. Atypical DDK is not a well-defined singular entity but rather a label for a collection of disturbances associated with diverse etiologies, including motoric, structural, sensory, and cognitive. The clinical value of DDK can be optimized by consideration of task parameters, analysis method, and population of interest.

scholarly journals Multifaceted Approach to Resveratrol Bioactivity: Focus on Antioxidant Action, Cell Signaling and Safety

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Kovacic ◽  
Ratnasamy Somanathan
Keyword(s):  
Cell Signaling ◽  
Red Wine ◽  
Wide Spectrum ◽  
Physiological Activity ◽  
Protective Agent ◽  
Multifaceted Approach ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Future Work

Resveratrol (RVT) is a naturally occurring trihydroxy stilbene that displays a wide spectrum of physiological activity. Its ability to behave therapeutically as a component of red wine has attracted wide attention. The phenol acts as a protective agent involving various body constituents. Most attention has been given to beneficial effects in insults involving cancer, aging, cardiovascular system, inflammation and the central nervous system. One of the principal modes of action appears to be as antioxidant. Other mechanistic pathways entail cell signaling, apoptosis and gene expression. There is an intriguing dichotomy in relation to pro-oxidant property. Also discussed are metabolism, receptor binding, rationale for safety and suggestions for future work. This is the first comprehensive review of RVT based on a broad, unifying mechanism.

scholarly journals Biomaterial Approaches to Modulate Reactive Astroglial Response

2018 ◽  
Vol 205 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 372-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan M. Zuidema ◽  
Ryan J. Gilbert ◽  
Manoj K. Gottipati
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Glial Scar ◽  
Secondary Injury ◽  
Injury Site ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Preclinical Animal Models

Over several decades, biomaterial scientists have developed materials to spur axonal regeneration and limit secondary injury and tested these materials within preclinical animal models. Rarely, though, are astrocytes examined comprehensively when biomaterials are placed into the injury site. Astrocytes support neuronal function in the central nervous system. Following an injury, astrocytes undergo reactive gliosis and create a glial scar. The astrocytic glial scar forms a dense barrier which restricts the extension of regenerating axons through the injury site. However, there are several beneficial effects of the glial scar, including helping to reform the blood-brain barrier, limiting the extent of secondary injury, and supporting the health of regenerating axons near the injury site. This review provides a brief introduction to the role of astrocytes in the spinal cord, discusses astrocyte phenotypic changes that occur following injury, and highlights studies that explored astrocyte changes in response to biomaterials tested within in vitro or in vivo environments. Overall, we suggest that in order to improve biomaterial designs for spinal cord injury applications, investigators should more thoroughly consider the astrocyte response to such designs.

scholarly journals Muscle activation patterns are more constrained and regular in treadmill than in overground human locomotion

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilaria Mileti ◽  
Aurora Serra ◽  
Nerses Wolf ◽  
Victor Munoz-Martel ◽  
Antonis Ekizos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Control ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Human Locomotion ◽  
Activation Patterns ◽  
Motor Primitives ◽  
Muscle Activation Patterns ◽  
Synergistic Activation ◽  
Clinical Environments ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Main Activity

AbstractThe use of motorized treadmills as convenient tools for the study of locomotion has been in vogue for many decades. However, despite the widespread presence of these devices in many scientific and clinical environments, a full consensus on their validity to faithfully substitute free overground locomotion is still missing. Specifically, little information is available on whether and how the neural control of movement is affected when humans walk and run on a treadmill as compared to overground. Here, we made use of linear and nonlinear analysis tools to extract information from electromyographic recordings during walking and running overground, and on an instrumented treadmill. We extracted synergistic activation patterns from the muscles of the lower limb via non-negative matrix factorization. We then investigated how the motor modules (or time-invariant muscle weightings) were used in the two locomotion environments. Subsequently, we examined the timing of motor primitives (or time-dependent coefficients of muscle synergies) by calculating their duration, the time of main activation, and their Hurst exponent, a nonlinear metric derived from fractal analysis. We found that motor modules were not influenced by the locomotion environment, while motor primitives resulted overall more regular in treadmill than in overground locomotion, with the main activity of the primitive for propulsion shifted earlier in time. Our results suggest that the spatial and sensory constraints imposed by the treadmill environment forced the central nervous system to adopt a different neural control strategy than that used for free overground locomotion. A data-driven indication that treadmills induce perturbations to the neural control of locomotion.

scholarly journals Early Development of Locomotor Patterns and Motor Control in Very Young Children at High Risk of Cerebral Palsy, a Longitudinal Case Series

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annike Bekius ◽  
Margit M. Bach ◽  
Laura A. van de Pol ◽  
Jaap Harlaar ◽  
Andreas Daffertshofer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cerebral Palsy ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Brain Lesions ◽  
Very Young Children ◽  
Gait Parameters ◽  
Locomotor Patterns ◽  
Over Time

The first years of life might be critical for encouraging independent walking in children with cerebral palsy (CP). We sought to identify mechanisms that may underlie the impaired development of walking in three young children with early brain lesions, at high risk of CP, via comprehensive instrumented longitudinal assessments of locomotor patterns and muscle activation during walking. We followed three children (P1–P3) with early brain lesions, at high risk of CP, during five consecutive gait analysis sessions covering a period of 1 to 2 years, starting before the onset of independent walking, and including the session during the first independent steps. In the course of the study, P1 did not develop CP, P2 was diagnosed with unilateral and P3 with bilateral CP. We monitored the early development of locomotor patterns over time via spatiotemporal gait parameters, intersegmental coordination (estimated via principal component analysis), electromyography activity, and muscle synergies (determined from 11 bilateral muscles via nonnegative matrix factorization). P1 and P2 started to walk independently at the corrected age of 14 and 22 months, respectively. In both of them, spatiotemporal gait parameters, intersegmental coordination, muscle activation patterns, and muscle synergy structure changed from supported to independent walking, although to a lesser extent when unilateral CP was diagnosed (P2), especially for the most affected leg. The child with bilateral CP (P3) did not develop independent walking, and all the parameters did not change over time. Our exploratory longitudinal study revealed differences in maturation of locomotor patterns between children with divergent developmental trajectories. We succeeded in identifying mechanisms that may underlie impaired walking development in very young children at high risk of CP. When verified in larger sample sizes, our approach may be considered a means to improve prognosis and to pinpoint possible targets for early intervention.

KCNQ3 is the principal target of retigabine in CA1 and subicular excitatory neurons

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nissi Varghese ◽  
Anna Lauritano ◽  
Maurizio Taglialatela ◽  
Anastasios Tzingounis
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Potassium Channel ◽  
Neuronal Excitability ◽  
Neuron Activity ◽  
Kcnq Channels ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Excitatory Neurons ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Ca1 Pyramidal Neuron ◽  
Patients With Epilepsy

Retigabine is a first-in-class potassium channel opener approved for patients with epilepsy. Unfortunately, several side effects have limited its use in clinical practice, overshadowing its beneficial effects. Multiple studies have shown that retigabine acts by enhancing the activity of members of the voltage-gated KCNQ (Kv7) potassium channel family, particularly the neuronal KCNQ channels KCNQ2-KCNQ5. However, it is currently unknown whether retigabine's action in neurons is mediated by all KCNQ neuronal channels or by only a subset. This knowledge is necessary to elucidate retigabine's mechanism of action in the central nervous system and its adverse effects and to design more effective and selective retigabine analogs. Here, we show that the action of retigabine in excitatory neurons strongly depends on the presence of KCNQ3 channels. Deletion of Kcnq3 severely limited the ability of retigabine to reduce neuronal excitability in mouse CA1 and subiculum excitatory neurons. Additionally, we report that in the absence of KCNQ3 channels, retigabine can enhance CA1 pyramidal neuron activity, leading to a greater number of action potentials and reduced spike frequency adaptation; this finding further supports a key role of KCNQ3 channels in mediating the action of retigabine. Our work provides new insight into the action of retigabine in forebrain neurons, clarifying retigabine's action in the nervous system.

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