The Association of Balance, Fear of Falling, and Daily Activities With Drug Phases and Severity of Disease in Patients With Parkinson

Introduction: In the elderly, functional balance, fear of falling, and independence in daily living activities are interrelated; however, this relationship may change under the influence of drug phase and the severity of disease in individuals with idiopathic Parkinson disease. This study aimed to investigate the association of functional balance, fear of falling, and independence in the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) with the drug on- and drug off-phases. Methods: A total of 140 patients with Parkinson disease (age: Mean±SD; 60.51±12.32 y) were evaluated in terms of their functional balance, fear of falling, and independence in their daily activities by the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Fall Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I), and Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale-ADL (UPDRS-ADL), respectively, in drug on- and drug off-phases. The Hoehn and Yahr scale recorded global disease rating. The Spearman coefficient, Kruskal-Wallis, and Mann-Whitney tests were used to find out whether the distribution of scale scores differs with regard to functional balance or disease severity. Results: A strong correlation was found between the functional balance, fear of falling, and independence in ADL with both drug phases. The results also showed the significant difference in the distribution of the FES-I and UPDRS-ADL scores with regard to functional balance (except independence in ADL in drug off-phase). Also, the distribution of the scores of BBS, FES-I, and UPDRS-ADL showed significant differences with regard to disease severity. Conclusion: The study showed a strong correlation between functional balance, fear of falling, and independence in ADL that can be affected by the drug phase and severity of the disease. However, more studies are needed to understand this relationship precisely.This work was supported by the Student Research Committee in Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.S

A Comparison of Foot Plantar Pressure in Badminton Players with Normal and High-Arched Feet during the Two-Way Lunge

Background: Compared to the individuals with a normal arch structure, those with high or low arch can be at an increased risk of overuse injuries. The risk of overuse injury among athletes is high due, in part, to the repeated loading of the lower extremities. The current study aimed to determine if foot type (high-arched or normal) results in differences in plantar pressure during two badminton-specific movements (right-reverse lunge and right-lateral lunge). Methods: Twenty badminton players (10 with normal feet and 10 with higharched feet) completed five trials in both right-reverse and right-lateral lunge, while in-shoe pressure data were collected at 100 Hz. The peak pressure and mean pressure were analyzed among the subjects for five major anatomical regions of the foot, using the independent t test in SPSS version 20. The foot type was determined by the foot posture index (FPI) (α<0.05). Results: Results showed that the plantar pressure characteristics of normal and high-arched feet were different; such that in high-arched feet, as compared to normal subjects, there were significantly fewer pressure strikes in the medial (P=0.010) and lateral (P=0.002) mid-foot in right-reverse lunge and this was significantly higher in forefoot (P=0.003) and toes (P=0.010). However, the peak (P=0.157) and mean (P=0.104) pressure in the heel was higher but not significant. In the right- lateral lunge, we found statistically lower peak pressure stroke for the lateral mid-foot (P=0.010) and forefoot (P=0.011); however, the mean pressure was lower in the lateral (P=0.010) and medial (P=0.040) mid-foot and forefoot (P=0.120), although it was not significant in the forefoot. Conclusion: Results showed that the medial longitudinal arch of the foot might cause pressure differences in the feet among the players with normal and higharched feet. As the results demonstrated, in high-arched feet, there are some regions where plantar pressure is higher and some where it is lower. Therefore, in order to prevent the badminton players from suffering probable foot injuries, attention should be paid to the compatibility of the insole/shoe and the medial longitudinal arch and other areas of the foot that suffer more pressures than normal subjects. 2017© The Authors. Published by JRSR. All rights reserved

Comparison of plantar pressure on normal -footed vs. high arch-footed badminton players in two-way lunge

Background: Compared to the individuals with a normal arch structure, those with high or low arch can be at an increased risk of overuse injuries. The risk of overuse injury among athletes is high due, in part, to the repeated loading of the lower extremities. The current study aimed to determine if foot type (high-arched or normal) results in differences in plantar pressure during two badminton-specific movements (right-reverse lunge and right-lateral lunge). Methods: Twenty badminton players (10 with normal feet and 10 with higharched feet) completed five trials in both right-reverse and right-lateral lunge, while in-shoe pressure data were collected at 100 Hz. The peak pressure and mean pressure were analyzed among the subjects for five major anatomical regions of the foot, using the independent t test in SPSS version 20. The foot type was determined by the foot posture index (FPI) (α<0.05). Results: Results showed that the plantar pressure characteristics of normal and high-arched feet were different; such that in high-arched feet, as compared to normal subjects, there were significantly fewer pressure strikes in the medial (P=0.010) and lateral (P=0.002) mid-foot in right-reverse lunge and this was significantly higher in forefoot (P=0.003) and toes (P=0.010). However, the peak (P=0.157) and mean (P=0.104) pressure in the heel was higher but not significant. In the right- lateral lunge, we found statistically lower peak pressure stroke for the lateral mid-foot (P=0.010) and forefoot (P=0.011); however, the mean pressure was lower in the lateral (P=0.010) and medial (P=0.040) mid-foot and forefoot (P=0.120), although it was not significant in the forefoot. Conclusion: Results showed that the medial longitudinal arch of the foot might cause pressure differences in the feet among the players with normal and higharched feet. As the results demonstrated, in high-arched feet, there are some regions where plantar pressure is higher and some where it is lower. Therefore, in order to prevent the badminton players from suffering probable foot injuries, attention should be paid to the compatibility of the insole/shoe and the medial longitudinal arch and other areas of the foot that suffer more pressures than normal subjects