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INTRODUCTION: Temporomandibular joint is a synovial joint responsible for the movement of the mandible, allowing the opening and closing of the mouth. Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) refers to the dysfunction of this joint, involving various factors and pathologies in the orofacial region. Physiotherapy plays a crucial role in the treatment of TMD by effectively reducing pain and improving TMD symptoms. However, not all dentists recognize the importance of collaborating with physiotherapists (PTs). Therefore, it is necessary to assess dentists' awareness regarding the role of PTs in treating TMD.AIMS: This study aims to identify dentists' level of awareness about the role of physiotherapy in TMD treatment and their willingness to collaborate with PTs in managing TMD.MATERIALS AND METHODS: An online survey was conducted among 106 dentists using a self-administered questionnaire on Google Forms. Students pursuing bachelor of dental surgery were excluded from the study and those with more than 25 years of experience were excluded. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, and descriptive analysis was performed using pie charts and bar diagrams.RESULTS: The study revealed that 78% of dentists were aware of the role of PTs in treating TMD patients, but only 40% of dentists referred TMD patients to PTs. In addition, 71.7% of dentists expressed interest in referring TMD patients to PTs, and 80% of dentists were interested in learning more about the benefits of collaborating with PTs in treating TMD.CONCLUSION: While a significant percentage of dentists in the survey were aware of the role of PTs in treating TMD, the rate of referral to PTs was low. This highlights the need to educate dentists about the role of PTs in treating TMD patients and encourage them to refer TMD patients for multidisciplinary rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Neck pain is a common musculoskeletal complaint, with a point prevalence of 15% of males and 23% of females experiencing symptoms. Approximately 20% of individuals visiting orthopaedic clinics have neck pain that originates from myofascial cause. Persistence of myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) in the neck for long periods results in headache, dizziness or vertigo, limited neck and shoulder range of motion (ROM), abnormal sensation, autonomic dysfunction, and disability.AIM: The purpose of the study was to determine the combined effect of dry needling (DN) and muscle energy technique (MET) on neck pain of myofascial origin.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-six subjects, both male and female, aged 20–40 years with MTrPs in the upper trapezius (UT) and levator scapulae (LS) muscles having unilateral or bilateral pain in the neck, were recruited with a convenience sampling technique. The subjects were equally (n = 12) divided into three groups: Group A received only MET, Group B received only DN, and Group C received both DN and MET. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Neck Disability Index (NDI), Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), pain pressure threshold (PPT) levels, and cervical ROM were assessed at baseline and after each intervention. The subjects were treated for three sessions with a 2-days break between each session, and the outcomes were assessed. The data collected were analyzed by SPSS (version 26).RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Significant improvements were observed in all the three groups in terms of decrease in the VAS, NDI, and PCS scores (P < 0.05). The PPT levels on both UT and LS muscles, along with ROM of cervical (lateral flexion and rotation), were improved (P < 0.05) in all the three groups; however, Group DN + MET showed (P < 0.01) better results. Therefore, the combined use of DN and MET is recommended as a better technique for the management of myofascial neck pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Flexibility is an important physiological component of physical fitness. The length of the muscle tissue is thought to play an important role in the effectiveness and efficacy of human movement. Calf is one of the commonest muscle prone to tightness. Most of the forefoot and ankle problems arise due to gastrocnemius and soleus tightness and contractures. To manage such a condition, stretching of the calf muscles are commonly prescribed to increase available dorsiflexion of the ankle joint. Though there are several effective physiotherapeutic exercises available to resolve this problem, but it's still in dilemma about the immediate effects. Muscle Energy Technique (MET) and Static Stretching (SS) are the techniques which can efficiently improve the flexibility of muscles and also very scarce literature is present on comparing the effect of these techniques for increasing ankle dorsiflexion for improving calf tightness. So, this study aimed to evaluate and compare the immediate effect of Muscle Energy Technique and Static Stretching on calf flexibility in females. Methodology: An experimental study in which 30 female subjects aged between 18 to 25 years were divided into two groups.GroupA (n= 15) and Group B (n=15) were given MET and Static Stretching (SS) respectively. Ankle Dorsiflexion ROM was assessed pre- intervention and post- intervention. The data collected were analyzed by SPSS (version 26). Result and Conclusion: Group A (MET) and Group B (SS) were given suitable intervention for calf muscle tightness, and bothgroups showed that the mean ROM during post-test was higher than pre-test. After the comparison of both groups, no significant difference was seen in the mean scores (p≥ 0.05). Equal number of repetitions of both techniques were given, however, still MET showed slightly greater effect. Therefore, the study concluded that fewer repetitions of MET could have greater or equal effect as Static Stretching. Further studies with large sample size and follow up are recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) is a leading cause of work absenteeism and increased costs for employers and the health care systems. It may emanate from activation of peripheral nociceptors due to tissue damage, but when the perception of pain persists beyond the expected time for tissue healing, it has become chronic. Central Sensitization (CS) is an important mechanism involved in chronic pain conditions causing amplified responses to noxious and innocuous inputs. Despite the association of CS in Chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders (CMPDs), the evidence regarding prevalence of CS in CMPDs is lacking. Methodology: A descriptive study to document prevalence of CS in CMPDs was conducted among 190 participants with age group 18-65 years. The Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) was used to determine severity of CS in chronic pain. Results and CONCLUSIONS: The mean CSI score for the whole sample was 26.28±13.32 and the prevalence of CS was highest among participants with shoulder pain (28.6%) followed by leg pain (25%) and back pain (23.1%). In clinical practice, modification of life style factors and improving quality of life in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain could be instrumental in mediating management strategies of CS in addition to pharmacological treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low back pain affects up to 90% of the world's population at some point in their lives. Until date no questionnaire has been designed for back pain in the garment industry workers. Therefore, the objective of this study is to design a questionnaire to determine the prevalence, risk factors, impact, health care service utilization and back pain features in the garment industry workers and gain preliminary experience of its use. The content validity and reliability of the questionnaire was established. Items showing acceptable internal consistency and moderate to high test re-test reliability were retained in the questionnaire. Items showing unacceptable internal consistency, low test re-test reliability or poor differentiation were reworded, redrafted and re-tested on the workers. It took 20 min to complete one interview schedule. Environmental factors such as the absence of the garment industry owner/supervisor or co-workers at the time of the interview and interview during leisure hours need to be standardized. Thus, final questionnaire is ready for use after necessary amendments and will be used on the larger sample size in the main study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose of the study: To determine the effects of Nerve Mobilisation on Vibration Perception Threshold (VPT) in Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy. Materials and Methods: 30 male subjects with VPT > 25, mean height of 175.93 and mean weight of 82.53 kg on the basis of thorough assessment and after signing informed consent were randomly divided into experimental and control group. The vibration perception Threshold was measured on all the four points on the plantar aspect of the foot i.e. pulp of the toe and 1st, 3rd and 5th metatarsal heads bilaterally for both the groups on Day 1 prior to treatment. The subjects in the experimental group were given Tibial nerve mobilization bilaterally. This procedure was continued for a total of 21 days. The subjects in the control group were not given any intervention. Dependent Variables: VPT readings at great toe and 1st, 3rd and 5th metatarsal head. The subjects in both the groups were reassessed for Vibration Perception Threshold on the 21st Day. The post- test measurements of VPT were then compared with the pre - test ones and the appropriate data analysis was done.Results: It was found that the subjects who were given tibial nerve mobilization showed reduction in VPT scores. Conclusion: Nerve mobilisation may be an effective technique for delaying the diabetes related peripheral neuropathy, if detected at its earlier stages. This will ultimately help in preservation of the vibration sense of the foot and consequently reduce or delay the incidence of the devastating effects such as foot ulceration which may lead to foot amputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose of the Study To determine the relative efficacy of Muscle Energy Technique (MET) as compared to Conventional Therapy in chronic low back pain due to Sacroiliac joint dysfunction.Materials and Methods30 patients 24 females and 6 males aged 30 - 50 yrs (41± 7.61), with a height of 158 ± 7.34 cm and weight of 66.2 ±10.59 kg whose primary reported symptom was chronic low back pain were included for the study. The study was conducted in two phases:Phase 1 involved screening of Sacroiliac joint (SIJD) in the subjects having chronic low back pain (LBP) of greater than 3months duration on the basis of subjective history and assessment criteria. The subjects who were tested positive for SIJD were made to sign an informed consent and included in the Phase 2 where they were randomly divided in to two groups:Group I Experimental Group (MET)Group II Conventional Therapy Group Dependent Variables(1) Pain perception on VAS, (2) Disability score on Revised Oswestry Disability Index, (3) Apparent functional leg length measurement using tape measure.The subjects in both the groups were treated for 6 days and Post treatment measurements (Day 6) were compared with Pre treatment (Day 1) measurements using appropriatestatistical analysis.Results The apparent functional leg length difference found in SIJD could be restored to near normal in MET group. As far as reduction in pain and disability are concerned, both the groups showed almost similar results.Conclusion The present study concludes that SIJD (hypomobility) is a significant contributor and must be ruled out in each and every subject suffering from chronic LBP. It can be diagnosed on the basis of history and cluster of physical tests and can be successfully managed using MET along with Conventional Therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship (3D-QSAR) analysis of large, flexible molecules, such as the dopamine reuptake inhibitor GBR 12909 ( 1), is complicated by the fact that they can take on a wide range of closely-related conformations. The first step in the analysis is to classify the conformers into groups. Over 600 conformers each of a piperazine ( 2) and piperidine ( 3) analog of 1 were generated by random search conformational analysis using the Merck Molecular Force Field (MMFF94). Singular value decomposition (SVD) was used to group the conformers of 2 and 3 by the similarity of their non-ring torsional angles. SVD uncovered subtle differences in their conformer populations due to that fact that the conformers separate along different principal components, and ultimately to the fact that different torsional angles are the chief contributors to these components. The results were compared to our previous SVD analysis (Fiorentino, et al., Journal of Computational Chemistry, 2006, 27, 609-620) of conformer populations of 2 and 3 generated by the Tripos force field and Gasteiger-Hückel charges. Except for the dominant contribution of angle B3 to principal component 8 seen with both force fields, the angles which are chiefly responsible for the grouping of the conformers of 2 and 3 are different with both force fields. This illustrates that SVD is useful in identifying unique groupings of conformers in large data sets of flexible molecules-a first step in selecting representative conformers for 3D-QSAR modeling studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]