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Aim: To examine the clinical characteristics and early rehabilitation results and to investigate the relationship between rehabilitation initiation time and rehabilitation-related outcome measurements in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients who have early rehabilitation., Material and Methods: Forty-seven TBI patients who were referred for rehabilitation in the neurosurgery department were enrolled in the study retrospectively. Clinical characteristics and rehabilitation-related outcome measurements including consciousness, functional outcome, daily living activities, functional mobility, and ambulation of all patients were recorded. The paired samples t-test was used to compare data before and after rehabilitation. The relationship between rehabilitation initiation time and the other outcomes was analyzed with Pearson's correlation test., Results: Most of the TBI patients were male (83%) and the severities of the trauma were mostly mild (42%). The causes of trauma were mostly falls (53%). Twenty-three (49%) of the patients underwent surgical intervention. The lengths of time between admission and consultation and between surgery and consultation were 19.82±17.9 and 14.24±15.4 days, respectively. The lengths of stay in intensive care and hospital were respectively 27.32±34.93 and 41.35±32.83 days. The rehabilitation time was 21.50±24.32 days. The before and after rehabilitation results showed that all rehabilitation-related outcome measurements improved significantly (p < 0.001). The relationship between rehabilitation initiation time and the other outcomes was statistically significant (p < 0.05)., Conclusion: This was a descriptive study in terms of demonstrating the demographic and clinical characteristics of TBI patients who need rehabilitation in the neurosurgery department. Early rehabilitation can enhance the rehabilitation-related outcome including consciousness, functional outcome, daily living activities, functional mobility, and ambulation in TBI patients as soon as their medical condition is stable. Early rehabilitation initiation time is important for improving the rehabilitation-related outcomes.

Purpose: To compare the excitation of the six different segments of the latissimus dorsi (LD) while reaching different distances and in different directions in stroke patients and healthy controls., Method: Surface electromyography was used to measure the excitation of the LD segments (LD1-LD6) in 12 chronic stroke patients and 11 healthy controls during reaching tasks. A target was placed in the sagittal and scapular planes at arm's length, 125% of arm's length, and maximum reaching distance. The clinical trial registration number is NCT04181151 (date of registration November 25, 2019)., Results: The excitation of the LD segments during the arm's length reaching task was similar between the groups (p greater than 0.05). The excitation of LD1, LD2, and LD5 in the sagittal plane and of LD1, LD2, LD3, and LD5 in the scapular plane was higher during the reaching 125% of arm's length task compared to the controls (p < 0.05). During the maximum reaching task, the excitation of LD1 was higher in the stroke patients in both the sagittal and scapular planes (p < 0.05)., Conclusion: The excitation of the LD segments was influenced by the direction and distance of the reaching in the stroke patients. The results of this study may help us to better understand how the LD behaves after stroke and to design rehabilitation approaches with a greater focus on the LD., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

We investigated the antioxidant and anti-ulcerogenic effects of fulvic acid (FA) on oxidative damage caused by water avoidance stress (WAS) in rat gastrointestinal mucosa. Three experimental groups were established: control (C), chronic stress (CS), and chronic stress + FA (CS + FA). After WAS, a single dose of FA was administered for 10 days to the CS + FA group. Samples of the pyloric region of the stomach were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS). Immunohistochemical staining was performed for inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS). Total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS), oxidative stress index (OSI), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and catalase (CAT) levels were measured biochemically. By light microscopy, we observed loss of gastric epithelial cells and greater polymorphonuclear cell migration into the mucosa in the CS group compared to the C group. We found intact epithelial cell structure and a thick superficial mucus layer in the CS + FA group compared to the CS group. These findings in the CS + FA group were similar to those for group C. iNOS staining was stronger in the CS group compared to the C group. TOS and OSI levels in the CS + FA group were decreased compared to the CS group, but TAS, SOD, GPx and CAT levels were increased. We found that WAS caused damage to epithelium and connective tissue of the stomach mucosa and that this damage was prevented by FA. Therefore, administration of FA appears to prevent stress induced damage to rat stomach.

Cisplatin (CP) is one of the most preferred platinum-containing antineoplastic drugs. However, even in nontoxic plasma concentrations, it may cause kidney injury. To be able to increase its effective pharmacological dose, its side effects need to be regarded. Diet restriction (DR) has been demonstrated to improve cellular survival in a number of disorders. In this context, we investigated the role of DR in CP-induced nephrotoxicity (CPN). Besides alternate DR, animals were exposed to DR for 3 days prior or after CP treatment. Here, we observed that both 3 days of DR reverses the nephrotoxic effect of CP, which was associated with improved physiological outcomes, such as serum creatine, blood-urea nitrogen and urea. These treatments significantly increased phosphorylation of survival kinases PI3K/Akt and ERK-1/2 and decreased the level of stress kinase JNK were noted. In addition, the activation level of signal transduction mediator p38 MAPK phosphorylation was higher particularly in both three-day DR groups. Next, animals were fed with carbohydrate-, protein- or fat-enriched diets in the presence of CP. Results indicated that not only fasting but also dietary content itself may play a determinant role in the severity of CPN. Our data suggest that DR is a promising approach to reduce CPN by regulating metabolism and cell signaling pathways., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Aim: To investigate the effects of lumbar stabilization exercises on pain severity, functional disability, and physical performance after two weeks following radiofrequency denervation in patients with lumbar facet joint syndrome (LFJS)., Material and Methods: Thirty-nine patients diagnosed with LFJS and had radiofrequency denervation were assigned to study and control groups. The study group (n=20) received a six-week stabilization exercise program and was informed about spine biomechanics, while the control group (n=19) received only informations about spine biomechanics. Pain severity with visual analogue scale, perceived disability with Oswestry disability index, physical performance with physical performance tests and gait speed test were applied before and after radiofrequency denervation, and after six weeks of intervention program., Results: Despite the similar improvements were shown in terms of all outcomes in both groups following radiofrequency denervation (p > 0.05), the improvements were more in favor of study group after six week intervention program (p < 0.05)., Conclusion: These results indicate that radiofrequency denervation is effective in improving the pain, disability, and physical performance in patients with LFJS and this effect is further enhanced by the stabilization exercises following this procedure. Adding stabilization exercises to radiofrequency denervation yielded positive outcomes and these exercise are strongly advised in physiotherapy and rehabilitation program.