Search

Objectives: This study aims to examine the effects of whole-body vibration (WBV) therapy + home-based exercise (HBE) therapy; physical therapy modalities (PTMs)+HBE; and WBV+PTM+HBE on pain severity, physical performance, and functional status in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). Patients and methods: This single-center, single-blind, three-armed, prospective, randomized-controlled study included a total of 65 patients (3 males, 62 females; mean age: 56.0±6.3 years; range, 45 to 70 years) who were diagnosed with knee OA between February 2014 and July 2014. The participants were randomly divided into three groups. Group 1 (n=22) received WBV+HBE, Group 2 (n=22) received WBV+PTM+HBE, and Group 3 (n=21) received PTM+HBE alone. The primary outcome measure was functional physical performance, while the secondary outcome measures were pain intensity and functional status. All the measurements were evaluated by a single blinded investigator before and after treatment. Results: All the functional physical performance tests (p<0.01), pain intensity (p<0.01), and functional status (p<0.01) showed statistically significant effects in terms of time and group × time interaction, but no significant difference was observed among the groups (p>0.05). We observed statistically and clinically significant improvement in all of the functional physical performance tests, pain, and functional status for Group 2. There was a statistically and clinically significant improvement only in the functional physical performance tests for Group 1. In Group 3, no clinical or statistical significance was achieved in any outcome measurements. Conclusion: Treatment program consisting of WBV+PTM+HBE can yield clinically and statistically favorable results by improving all of the pain, functional status and physical performance parameters of the patients with knee OA, while WBV+HBE can be clinically and statistically effective only in the physical performance parameters of the patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effects of motor imagery (MI), action observation (AO), and action execution (AE) interventions on the autonomic nervous system (ANS) in individuals with chronic stroke. Methods: This was a single-center, randomized, case-control study. Thirty-six patients were randomly assigned to MI (n = 10), AO (n = 15), and the AE group (n = 11). Heart rate (HR)-based measurements (HR, heart rate variability (HRV)) and blood pressure were evaluated before the practice of each group. In the MI group, participants were instructed to imagine themselves walking at their own comfortable pace for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in the AO group, participants were shown a video of a person walking for 5 minutes. Finally, in the AE group, participants were instructed to actually walk for 5 minutes. Then, all measurements were taken again. Results: A statistically significant difference was found in HR and mean RR interval within the AE group (p < 0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in the Root Mean Square of Successive Differences Between Normal Heartbeats (RMSSD) (ms) within the AO group (p < 0.05). There was a significant difference in HR and mean RR intervals (ms) between groups (p < 0.05). According to post-hoc analyses, HR was statistically significantly higher in the AE group compared to the other groups, and the mean RR interval was statistically significantly lower (p < 0.05). Conclusions: In conclusion, in patients with chronic stroke, AE and AO may affect ANS by increasing sympathetic activation. It is recommended for future studies to evaluate whether patients actually engage in imagery during the MI task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a study on the development and validation of the Turkish version of the Concerns About Pain Scale (UW-CAP) for individuals with chronic low back pain. The Turkish version of the scale demonstrated good internal consistency, excellent test-retest reliability, and strong positive correlations with other pain-related measures. The authors conclude that the Turkish version of the UW-CAP is a valid and reliable tool for assessing pain catastrophizing in Turkish individuals with chronic low back pain. However, the study had limitations, such as the inclusion of only individuals with chronic low back pain and the lack of investigation into responsiveness and minimal clinically important difference values. [Extracted from the article]

Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the short- and mid-term effects of pain neuroscience education (PNE) combined with manual therapy (MT) and a home exercise program (HEP) on pain intensity, back performance, disability, and kinesiophobia in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Methods: This study was designed as a prospective, randomized, controlled, single-blind study in which 69 participants were randomly assigned to three groups. Participants in Group 1 received PNE, MT, and the HEP, while Group 2 received MT and the HEP. Participants in the control group did the HEP only. All interventions lasted 4 weeks. The participants' pain intensity, disability, low back performance, and kinesiophobia were assessed. All assessments were executed before intervention, at 4 weeks, and at 12 weeks post-intervention by the same blinded physiotherapist. A mixed model for repeated measures was used for each outcome measure. Results: Analysis of pain level (p <.05), back performance (p <.05), disability (p <.05) and kinesiophobia (p <.05) revealed significant time, group, and time-by-group interaction effects. The participants in Group 1 exhibited greater improvement in terms of pain intensity and kinesiophobia compared to the participants in Group 2 and the control group. Level of disability was significantly decreased in both Group 1 and Group 2 compared to the control group. Conclusion: This study suggests that a multimodal treatment program combining PNE, MT, and HEP is an effective method for improving back performance and reducing pain, disability, and kinesiophobia in the short (4 weeks) and midterm (12 weeks). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]