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Background: The aim of the study was to assess the inter-rater and intra-rater agreement of measurements performed with the Luna EMG (electromyography) multifunctional robot, a tool for evaluation of upper limb proprioception in individuals with stroke., Methods: The study was conducted in a group of patients with chronic stroke. A total of 126 patients participated in the study, including 78 women and 48 men, on average aged nearly 60 years (mean = 59.9). Proprioception measurements were performed using the Luna EMG diagnostic and rehabilitation robot to assess the left and right upper limbs. The examinations were conducted by two raters, twice, two weeks apart. The results were compared between the raters and the examinations., Results: High consistency of the measurements performed for the right and the left hand was reflected by the interclass correlation coefficients (0.996-0.998 and 0.994-0.999, respectively) and by Pearson's linear correlation which was very high (r = 1.00) in all the cases for the right and the left hand in both the inter-rater and intra-rater agreement analyses., Conclusions: Measurements performed by the Luna EMG diagnostic and rehabilitation robot demonstrate high inter-rater and intra-rater agreement in the assessment of upper limb proprioception in patients with chronic stroke. The findings show that Luna EMG is a reliable tool enabling effective evaluation of upper limb proprioception post-stroke., Competing Interests: The sponsor of the study was EGZOTech and this fact may be considered a possible conflict of interest. However, EGZOTech employees (Anna Poświata, Anna Roksela, Michał Mikulski) were not involved in direct activities related to the study protocol (patient recruitment, data collection, analysis of results), but supported the researchers by conducting consultations on the robotic technology that EGZOTech developed as a company and provided the equipment necessary for this study. Additionally, these authors: participated in designing the study, conducting a literature review, establishing inclusion and exclusion criteria, prepared the tables, writing the research methodology and accepting the manuscript., (© 2024 Leszczak et al.)

The aim of the study was to assess the external and internal compatibility of the Biometrics E-LINK EP9 evaluation system device in the area of hand grip and pinch strength in the Polish population. The testing of hand grip and pinch strength was carried out among 122 healthy students. Two examiners performed hand grip and pinch strength measurements with a Biometrics E-LINK EP9 evaluation system device. Measurements were made for the right and left hands. The same people were tested again two weeks later, under the same conditions. The scores of one rater on the first and second tests were compared for reproducibility, and the scores of the two raters were compared to assess the reliability of the instrument. The measurements were found to be highly consistent both between the investigators and between the tests in the hand grip dynamometer test. The findings show high values of the Pearson's correlation coefficient equal or close to 1, as well as the interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) >0.9. Analysis of pinch strength measurements performed using the pinchmeter also found high values of the Pearson's correlation coefficient close to 1, as well as the interclass correlation coefficient >0.9; this reflects high agreement between the measurements performed by two investigators as well as assessments performed by one investigator at time intervals. These findings were confirmed by analyses performed using Bland-Altman plots. The measurements made with the Biometrics E-link EP9 evaluation system show high internal and external consistency in hand grip and pinch strength assessment. Biometrics E-link EP9 can be recommended for daily clinical practice., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Leszczak et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of rehabilitation in terms of changes in the body mass composition in the upper and lower limbs depending on the length of time after stroke and the age of the patient. MATERIAL AND METHODS Eighty-two patients after ischemic stroke were tested 3 times: on admission, after 5 weeks, and 3 months after leaving the hospital (follow-up). During each examination, a segmental analysis of the components of the body mass of the upper limbs and lower limbs was performed, depending on the side of paresis. RESULTS Patients between 7 and 12 months after stroke with right-sided paresis had a reduction of fat (P=0.027) and an increase in muscle tissue in the lower (P=0.030) and upper limbs with paresis (P=0.037), as well as in the healthy upper limb (P=0.034) after rehabilitation. Only in the youngest age group (25-44 years) and in patients with left-sided paresis was there a decrease of adipose tissue in the healthy upper (P=0.012) and paresis limbs (P=0.032) and an increase in the muscle tissue mass in the right upper limb (P=0.010) after rehabilitation. CONCLUSIONS The rehabilitation program had a significant impact on the change in the composition of body mass in upper and lower limbs in people with right-sided paresis, particularly 7 to 12 months after stroke and in the youngest age group (25-44 years). These results may be useful in planning a rehabilitation program for stroke patients to consider the patient's dominant hand and neglect.

Background: Rehabilitation-oriented therapy after a stroke must continue in various forms as a life-long effort., Aim: The study investigated the impact of spa rehabilitation on the quality of life and functional efficiency in patients after an ischemic stroke at a chronic stage of recovery., Methods: The assessment was carried out in a spa resort in southeastern Poland. It involved 32 patients with strokes who participated in a three-week rehabilitation program. Three examinations were performed: upon admission, on the day of discharge and at a two-month follow-up. The quality of life and functional efficiency were assessed with the WHOQOL-BREF and Barthel Index., Results: The quality of life was significantly higher in Exam II compared with Exam I ( p < 0.001), and improvement was retained at the follow-up. The Barthel scores were higher in Exam II compared with Exam I (79.84 vs. 68.59), while the differences between the scores in Exams II and III were small ( p = 0.039)., Conclusions: Three-week spa rehabilitation seems to favorably affect the functional efficiency and quality of life after a stroke. The effects appear to be long-term. The gender, age and time from stroke onset do not seem to impact short-term effects. However, long-term effects are related to the time from stroke onset.

Background: Occupational burnout, which is more and more commonly encountered among medical professionals and investigated by researchers worldwide, may in particular affect health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic., Objectives: The aim of the study was to assess the risk of occupational burnout among physiotherapists working actively in clinical hospitals in south-eastern Poland during the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: The level of burnout among the studied physiotherapists was assessed using the Polish version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory by Maslach (MBI). The study was conducted from 20 March to 3 May, 2020 among physiotherapists working professionally during the COVID-19 pandemic in the south east of Poland, during which time health services related to therapeutic rehabilitation were suspended. The study was conducted among 1,540 physiotherapists with a license to practice who worked in clinical departments. Considering the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 106 physiotherapists were qualified for the study., Results: The current findings show that during the COVID-19 pandemic physiotherapists present high burnout rates in all three dimensions: EE (Mean 32.31; CI 29.47-35.15); DP (Mean 16.25; CI 14.48-18.03); PA (Mean 26.25; CI 24.41-28.10). As for gender-related effects, higher burnout rates were observed in the male workers, compared to the females, in all three domains: EE (Men: Mean 34.70; CI 29.90-39.50 -Women: Mean 31.03; CI 27.45-34.60); DP (Men: Mean 18.78; CI 15.98-21.59 -Women: Mean 14.90; CI 12.64-17.16) and PA (Men: Mean 24.54; CI 21.32-27.76 -Women: Mean 27.17; CI 24.90-29.44). The highest burnout rates, presented by the physiotherapists working in the profession for more than 20 years, were identified in the domain of EE (Mean: 35.30; CI 30.51-40.10) and in those with 10-15 years of experience, in the domains of DP (Mean: 18.31; CI 14.89-21.73) and PA (Mean: 23.97; CI 20.13-27.81). The highest rate of occupational burnout, reflected by the scores in all three domains (EE, DP, PA), was identified in Department I -Intensive Care and Anaesthesiology Department: EE - (Mean: 40.89, CI 35.27-46.52); DP - (Mean: 21.39, CI 17.90-24.88); and PA - (Mean: 23.07, CI 20.04-26.10), compared to the other departments. The subjects who rarely participated in courses or training programs showed the highest burnout rates (EE- Mean: 33.55, CI 29.33-37.77; DP- Mean: 16.71, CI 13.99-19.43; PA- Mean: 25.45, CI 22.47-28.43)., Conclusions: Occupational burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic is noticeable among physiotherapists working in clinical departments. The current findings show high burnout rates in all three domains: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP) and personal accomplishment (PA). A comparative analysis of these findings with reference to related studies published before the pandemic shows that the burnout rates among physiotherapists may have significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, given the scarcity of scientific evidence related to this specific problem in Poland and worldwide, it is necessary to continue research in occupational burnout affecting physiotherapists, particularly during the second wave of the pandemic, in order to gain a better understanding of the possible effects of social isolation and greater personal work-related health risks on the mental health of these medical professionals.

Background: Although dog-assisted therapy (DAT) has been used for years, there is still a scarcity of research findings confirming efficacy of the method. The current study was designed to assess effects of DAT on psychomotor development of children with mild intellectual disabilities., Material and Method: The study involved 60 children with mild intellectual disabilities, aged 10-13 years, divided into a group participating in a 10-month DAT program, and the control group. Four tests were applied, i.e., finger identification, postural imitation, kinaesthesia, and Bourdon-Wiersma Dot Cancellation Test. The examinations were carried out before the start and at the end of the DAT, and at a two-month follow-up., Results: The results obtained by the DAT group in all the four tests, at all the three timepoints, were not the same ( p < 0.001). No statistically significant differences were found in the measurement at the end of the therapy between the DAT group and the controls. On the other hand, the DAT group achieved significantly better scores ( p = 0.001 and p = 0.001), compared to the control, in the follow-up measurements two months after the end of the therapy in postural imitation and finger identification tests., Conclusions: Some of the scores achieved by the children in the DAT group improved in the measurements performed over time. Two months after the therapy ended, the children in the DAT group presented greater gains in motor planning (postural imitation test) and in the sense of touch, attention, and concentration (finger identification test), compared to the control group. Although the measurement performed immediately after the therapy did not show significant differences between the DAT group and the controls, the examination carried out at the two-month follow-up identified long-term gains in the treatment group in the domain of motor planning (postural imitation test).