Hong Kong Physiotherapy Journal

Background: The decline in lower limb muscle strength, one of the risk factors for falling in the older adults, puts older persons at an increased risk of falling. The assessment of the lower limb muscle strength is very important.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to construct the equation for predicting knee extensor muscle strength based on demographic data and the results of the Five-Time Sit-to-Stand Test (FTSST).

Methods: A total of 121 healthy elders (mean age $68.00\pm 7.26$) were asked to complete the FTSST and submit the demographic information. By using a stationary push–pull dynamometer, the knee extensor strength of each participant was assessed. The multiple regression analysis was used to explore knee extensor strength prediction equation.

Results: The findings demonstrated that the knee extensor strength equation was developed using variables obtained from gender, weight, and time to complete the FTSST. The equation was found to have a high correlation ($r=0.838$) and 70.1% estimation power. Its formula was as follows: Knee extensor $\mathrm{\text{strength}}=32.735+3.688$ (gender; $\mathrm{\text{female}}=0$ or $\mathrm{\text{male}}=1$)$+$0.189 (weight)−2.617 (time to complete the FTSST). However, there was an estimating error in this equation of 4.72kg.

Conclusion: The determining factors influencing knee extensor strength, which can be utilized to estimate the strength in elderly individuals, are demographic variables including gender, weight, and the time taken to complete the FTSST.

Background: Gait deficits are common among people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Therefore, investigating factors that may influence walking in PwMS is important. Previous studies in older adults and other neurological populations demonstrated the relationship between sleep quality and gait performance. Despite the fact that the prevalence of poor sleep quality is very high among PwMS, little is known about the effect of sleep quality on gait among PwMS.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationship between sleep quality and gait performance in PwMS.

Methods: Forty-one PwMS participated in the study between February 2019 and December 2019. Participants were asked to walk at a self-selected speed over 10m with an inertial measurement unit (IMU) attached over the back. Walking speed, step length (left and right), and step time were calculated. Sleep was estimated objectively using a wrist-worn triaxle-accelerometer; the derived parameters were sleep efficiency (SE) and the number of awakening after sleep onset (NASO).

Results: SE significantly correlated with step length ($p=0.02$). Furthermore, the NASO significantly correlated with gait speed ($p=0.03$), and step-time ($p=0.02$). These correlations remained significant even after adjusting for age and disease duration.

Conclusion: We observed that when corrected for disease duration and age there were relationships between NASO and SE to gait parameters; these observations warrant further investigations.

Background: Neck pain is a common musculoskeletal disorder, the most common type being non-specific chronic neck pain. It usually involves postural or mechanical causes. In Individuals with neck pain, a notable prevalence of visual complaints has been predominantly reported. It can be linked to the mismatch in the cervical afferent output.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the effect of oculomotor exercises on neck pain, neck disability, gaze stability and visual complaints among individuals with non-specific chronic neck pain and associated visual complaints.

Methods: A total of 32 individuals with non-specific chronic neck pain and associated visual complaints were equally randomised into two groups. To receive either: stretching to the sternocleidomastoid and anterior scalene along with neck Isometric exercises (Group A, conventional) or the conventional protocol along with oculomotor exercises (Group B, experimental). The protocol was given for three alternate days a week for three weeks, a total of nine sessions. The outcome measures were the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain, Neck Disability Index (NDI) for disability, Dynamic Visual Acuity (DVA) test for gaze stability and Visual Complaints Index (VCI) for visual complaints.

Results: Significant results were seen for the DVA ($p=0.002$) and VCI ($p=0.024$), suggesting improvements in gaze stability and visual complaints using oculomotor exercises.

Conclusion: From this study, we highlighted that oculomotor exercises along with conventional treatment led to improvement in visual complaints and gaze stability in patients with non-specific chronic neck pain and associated visual complaints.

Background: Nowadays, the development of training programs for speed, agility and reaction time responses in football players is increasing widely. Motor imagery is a new method that uses collateral with physical training. However, there is still a scarcity of evidence concerning the addition of motor imagery protocol to routine training programs.

Objective: The main objective was to compare speed, agility and reaction time after motor imagery training in university athletes and amateur athletes who received and did not receive motor imagery training for 2 weeks.

Methods: Participants were divided into 4 subgroups as follows: university athlete group with motor imagery training and control group, amateur athlete group with motor imagery training and control group. This study collected the training effects of speed, agility and reaction time. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the Mann–Whitney U test were selected to analyse the differences within and between groups, respectively.

Results: The result presented positive changes in all variables after training sessions for 2 weeks in all groups. Speed at 20m, agility, and reaction time were found to be significantly different after motor imagery training in both university athletes and amateur athletes.

Conclusion: This finding demonstrated that the addition of the motor imagery training along with routine physical training promotes physical performance in athletes at all experience levels. In further studies, the retention effect after practice should be considered.

Impaired respiratory function secondary to acute or chronic respiratory disease poses a significant clinical and healthcare burden. Intrapulmonary percussive ventilation (IPV) is used in various clinical settings to treat excessive airway secretions, pulmonary atelectasis, and impaired gas exchange. Despite IPV’s wide use, there is a lack of clinical guidance on IPV application which may lead to inconsistency in clinical practice. This scoping review aimed to summarise the clinical application methods and dosage of IPV used by clinicians and researchers to provide guidance. A two-staged systematic search was conducted to retrieve studies that used IPV in inpatient and outpatient settings. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Google scholar were searched from January 1979 till 2022. Studies with patients aged ≥16 years and published in any language were included. Two reviewers independently screened the title and abstract, reviewed full text articles, and extracted data. Search yielded 514 studies. After removing duplicates and irrelevant studies, 25 studies with 905 participants met the inclusion criteria. This is the first scoping review to summarise IPV application methods and dosages from the available studies in intensive care unit (ICU), acute inpatient (non-ICU), and outpatient settings. Some variations in clinical applications and prescribed dosages of IPV were noted. Despite variations, common trends in clinical application and prescription of IPV dosages were observed and summarised to assist clinicians with IPV intervention. Although an evidence-based clinical guideline could not be provided, this review provides detailed information on IPV application and dosages in order to provide clinical guidance and lays a foundation towards developing a clinical practice guideline in the future.

Background: Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a muscle pain disorder characterized by the presence of Myofascial Trigger Point (MTrP) within a taut band, local tenderness, referral of pain to a distant site, restricted range of motion, and autonomic phenomena. The upper trapezius is the muscle most often affected by MTrPs. Manual myofascial release (MFR) and Instrument-Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization (IASTM) are techniques of soft tissue release that are used to resolve MPS. Fifty six percent of physiotherapists complain of pain in multiple areas due to the massage and manual therapy that they have to perform.

Objective: The objective of this study is to find whether IASTM is better than manual MFR in treating patients with MPS in upper trapezius.

Methods: This study was a single-blinded randomized controlled trial that included 31 participants, both males and females between the age groups of 18–50 years. Participants were randomly divided into two groups. Three sessions were given over a period of one week for both groups. Group A received IASTM along with conventional treatment and Group B received Manual MFR along with the conventional treatment. The outcome measures evaluated were pain, cervical range of motion, pain pressure threshold (PPT) of trigger points, and the neck disability index. Pre- and post-measurements were taken and the analysis was done.

Results: Both the treatment methods significantly reduced pain, improved PPT, range of motion, and function. The effects between the groups showed that IASTM was significantly better than manual MFR to reduce pain. The improvement in PPT, range of motion and function were equal in both the groups.

Conclusion: IASTM and manual MFR both are effective individually as treatment procedures for pain, PPT, range of motion, and function. Neither of the treatment options can be considered better that the other. The clinician can decide based on the availability of the instrument, training, patient’s preference, and his/her comfort whether which of the two treatment methods should be used.

Background: Mechanical neck pain is common among young female university students and can lead to disability and reduced physical activity.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the effect of Kinesio taping (KT) to mechanical cervical traction (MCT) on young female university students with chronic neck pain.

Methods: Sixty young female university students with mechanical neck pain participated in this study; their ages ranged from 19 years to 23 years. They were assigned to three equal groups: the control group (A) received infrared, massage, stretching, and strengthening exercises three days per week for 6 weeks. Experimental group B received cervical traction in addition to the same program as the control, and experimental group C received KT in addition to the same program as the control group. Absolute pain intensity by the visual analogue scale (VAS) and neck disability index (NDI) were measured pre-and post-treatment intervention. Data were gathered at baseline, and after 6 weeks of intervention for three groups.

Results: The MANOVA test showed a significant reduction in NDI and pain level after 6 weeks between pre-and post-treatment intervention in group B ($P<0.001$ and $P<0.001$, respectively). There was a significant reduction in pain after 6 weeks in group C. There was also a significant reduction in NDI and pain level after 6 weeks in group B versus control group ($P<0.001$ and $P=0.001$, respectively). In addition, a significant reduction in pain level and NDI after 6 weeks was detected in group B compared to group C ($P<0.001$, $P=0.014$, respectively) while a significant reduction in pain level only between the control group (A) and group C was detected ($P<0.001$).

Conclusion: In young female university students with mechanical neck pain, cervical traction combined with physiotherapy program was found to be more effective than KT with physiotherapy program or physiotherapy program alone in reducing pain and enhancing functional abilities after 6 weeks. This will help physiotherapists make more informed decisions concerning the clinical effects of MCT.