What are The Benefits of Five-Toed Socks? A Scoping Review

ABSTRACT Background. The use of five-toed socks can be a valid prevention option against interdigital pro- blems and a valuable sensory stimulus in walking. However, nowadays, they are hardly ever sugges- ted because they are often little known or disregarded by clinicians dealing with podiatric problems. The aim . This scoping review aims to map and summarise the literature to identify interventions using five-toed socks Methods . Four databases were searched up to December 2022. Studies that considered the use of five-toed socks could be included. All interventions and contexts were considered. No restrictions were applied regarding language, study design and publication type. Grey literature and reference lists of included articles were not identified. The results were presented in numerical and thematic form. Results . Out of 23 initially identified studies, only 4 met the inclusion criteria for this scoping review. The majority of the included articles were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and involved participants of different ages, including both sporty and non-sporty individuals, who used five-toed socks as part of the intervention. It is worth noting that the authors focused solely on conservative interventions, with all 4 studies investigating the effects of wearing five-toed socks for more than one week. Conclusions . This is the first scoping review to provide a comprehensive overview of the topic. The results revealed clear gaps in primary research, confirming that current management is based on knowledge of five-toed socks. This review may be useful for general management and may provide a starting point for future research

Can beneficial frequencies in physiotherapy help treatment? Scoping Review

INTRODUCTION: The use of so-called beneficial music such as 432 Hz can be a support before and after rehabilitation treatment. However, nowadays, they are hardly ever suggested because they are often little known or disregarded by rehabilitation clinicians. This review aimed to map and summarise the literature to identify interventions using the beneficial 432 Hz music. METHODS: Four databases were searched until December 2022. The studies considered the use of the beneficial 432 Hz frequency before or after rehabilitation treatment. All interventions and contexts were considered. No restrictions were applied regarding language, study design, and publication type. Grey literature and reference lists of included articles were not identified. The results were presented in numerical and thematic form. RESULTS: From 23 initial registrations, 4 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Most of the articles were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and considered both young and adult sporty and non- sporty patients who used five-toed socks. The authors discussed only one range of interventions: conservative (n = 4). Specifically, the use of five-toed socks for a period of more than one week. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first scoping review to provide a comprehensive overview of the topic. The results revealed clear gaps in primary research, confirming that current management is based on knowledge of beneficial frequencies, particularly the 432 Hz. This review may be useful for general management and may provide a starting point for future research

Acquired haemophilia A in an elderly patient: A case report of functional recovery through physiotherapy

Introduction: Acquired haemophilia-A, although uncommon in elderly patients, poses significant clinical challenges, especially when associated with profound musculoskeletal complications. The potential mimicry of hematomas as tumors further complicates the diagnostic process. Case presentation: An 85-year-old male, with a remote history of hypertension, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and right inguinal hernia, presented with acute pain in the left lower limb, functional limitation, and deep hematomas in the ileopsoas and axillary region. Initial suspicions of a sarcomatous lesion in the ileopsoas, based on radiological findings, were refuted following histopathological examinations, which confirmed the presence of necrotic hemorrhagic tissue. The patient underwent a one-month physical therapy regimen, targeting lower extremity muscles, especially around the hip joint. Clinical discussion: The severity of the presentation and the involvement of vital muscles like the ileopsoas and quadriceps underscored the importance of comprehensive rehabilitation. Consistent therapeutic interventions, targeting muscle strength and joint function, demonstrated marked improvement as evidenced by the HJHS, HAL, and FISH scores. The multidisciplinary approach, entailing hematological, rehabilitative, and supportive measures, was paramount in ensuring holistic patient recovery. Conclusions: Acquired haemophilia-A in the elderly necessitates an integrative care approach, encompassing accurate diagnosis and tailored therapeutic interventions. This case emphasizes the transformative potential of dedicated physiotherapy in managing the musculoskeletal implications of this bleeding disorder, underscoring the value of early intervention and comprehensive care

MultiNERD: A Multilingual, Multi-Genre and Fine-Grained Dataset for Named Entity Recognition (and Disambiguation)

Named Entity Recognition (NER) is the task of identifying named entities in texts and classifying them through specific semantic categories, a process which is crucial for a wide range of NLP applications. Current datasets for NER focus mainly on coarse-grained entity types, tend to consider a single textual genre and to cover a narrow set of languages, thus limiting the general applicability of NER systems.In this work, we design a new methodology for automatically producing NER annotations, and address the aforementioned limitations by introducing a novel dataset that covers 10 languages, 15 NER categories and 2 textual genres.We also introduce a manually-annotated test set, and extensively evaluate the quality of our novel dataset on both this new test set and standard benchmarks for NER.In addition, in our dataset, we include: i) disambiguation information to enable the development of multilingual entity linking systems, and ii) image URLs to encourage the creation of multimodal systems. We release our dataset at https://github.com/Babelscape/multinerd

Manual Therapy in Diabetic Patients with Tibio-tarsal Dorsiflexion Deficit and Forefoot Overload: A Case Report

Introduction: Limitation of tibio-tarsal joint mobility in diabetic patients can occur within a few years of diagnosis, even in young patients. This joint movement deficit is believed to be due to stiffness in muscles, tendons, joint capsules, ligaments, and skin. With this in mind, the aim of this study is to design an experimental protocol of orthopedic manual therapy and therapeutic exercise in the future for subjects with diabetes, reduced joint mobility, and subsequent insufficient dorsal flexion of the tibio-ankle, and to test the reduced avampodalic pressure that correlates with an increased ulcerative risk. Case presentation: A patient aged 64, male, overweight, family history of type II diabetes, self-employed, and diagnosed with diabetes type 2. Results: The patient was evaluated with inertial motion sensors, a Baropodometric platform, a Lounge test, and MWM. Already after the first session, an improvement in plantar pressures was observed with a decrease both in the peaks from 413.6 Kpa to 99 Kpa in both feet and in the average plantar pressures from 129.8 Kpa to 54.5 Kpa for both feet with a decrease in plantar pressures at the forefoot from 43.7 % to 33.2 %. Tissue elasticity was assessed with the Lunge Test, and increased from 8 cm to 9.5 cm. Conclusion: The results suggest that the role of manual treatment combined with an exercise program could increase tarsal dorsiflexion and consequently decrease plantar pressures

The price strategies of export-oriented Italian firms

This paper estimates a pricing-to-market equation for Italy over the period 1990-99 with the aim of assessing the degree of exchange rate pass-through (ERPT). As compared to previous works, we minimize aggregation and selection biases using export data on all products (about 700 from 4 digits of SITC) and all destination markets (about 70). On average, ERPT is asymmetric: Italian exporters did not reduce their profit margins, and thus did not defend their market shares, when the Italian lira got appreciated (complete ERPT); on the contrary, they did raise margins – in the order of 30 per cent of the exchange rate variation – after a depreciation. Disaggregating in terms of destination markets and products, ERPT is incomplete when exports are directed to industrial countries and originate in oligopolistic industries, more precisely high-tech and economies of scale sectors. Despite large overlappings, the same results hold for industries where firms are bigger and more productive than average. Sales of traditional competitive products to non-industrial countries display an almost complete ERPT.exchange rate pass-through, pricing-to-market, market structure

A case report: Pain in the hand and tingling of the upper limb may be a symptom of a schwannoma in the supraclavicular region

Introduction Schwannomas, or neurilemmomas, are rare benign nerve sheath tumors primarily originating from peripheral nerves. Brachial plexus schwannomas, constituting approximately 5 % of cases, present a diagnostic and surgical challenge due to their rarity and the complex anatomy of the brachial plexus. Case presentation We present the case of a 51-year-old man who visited our physiotherapy clinic with a two-year history of intermittent pain and tingling in the fourth and fifth metacarpals of his non-dominant hand (Numeric Pain Rating Scale 2/10). The pain was nocturnal and resistant to various treatments. Physical examination did not reveal “red flag” symptoms. Considering the persistent and atypical nature of the symptoms, further diagnostic investigations, including an ultrasound of the supraclavicular region, were recommended. Clinical discussion Our case report emphasizes the importance of considering brachial plexus schwannomas in patients with prolonged and unconventional symptoms in the fourth and fifth digits, accompanied by supraclavicular swelling and a positive Tinel's sign. Comprehensive diagnostic evaluation is crucial to confirm or rule out a schwannoma in the supraclavicular area. The rarity of such tumors and the intricate brachial plexus anatomy require meticulous diagnostic and surgical approaches. Conclusions This case adds to the growing understanding of brachial plexus schwannomas and their diagnostic complexities. Our report underscores the significance of recognizing these tumors in patients with distinct symptomatology and highlights the need for detailed diagnostic assessments and surgical planning

Comparison of short-stretch bandage and long-stretch bandage for post-traumatic hand edema

Introduction and importance: Hand edema is a common post-surgical or traumatic complication in orthopedic patients, necessitating effective treatment interventions. This study aimed to investigate the effects of two different types of bandages, along with finger flexion exercises, on managing hand edema. Case presentation: Our orthopedic patients with post-surgical or traumatic hand edema and three non-edematous hands were enrolled in the study. A mixed model effect with fixed factors of time (pre-post) and bandage type (M, C, N), and random factors of hand, edema, fingers, and phalanges was applied. The bandage types were circular with short elastic bandage (M) and circular with elastic bandage (C). Finger flexion exercises involved alternating contractions of extrinsic and intrinsic flexors. Randomization ensured unbiased allocation to bandage types. Clinical discussion: The M bandage demonstrated a significant reduction in hand edema by effectively moving free fluids, reinforcing tissue hydrostatic pressure, and facilitating venous and lymphatic flow. On the other hand, the C bandage did not produce significant pre-post differences in hand circumference. Conclusions: The combination of a circular bandage with finger flexion exercises shows promise in reducing hand edema in orthopedic patients. Particularly, the stiff bandage M exhibited superior efficacy compared to the elastic one C in reducing hand circumference. These findings provide valuable insights for clinical practice, offering an effective strategy for managing hand edema and promoting better patient outcome

Satellite-Based Communications Security: A Survey of Threats, Solutions, and Research Challenges

Satellite-based Communication systems are gaining renewed momentum in Industry and Academia, thanks to innovative services introduced by leading tech companies and the promising impact they can deliver towards the global connectivity objective tackled by early 6G initiatives. On the one hand, the emergence of new manufacturing processes and radio technologies promises to reduce service costs while guaranteeing outstanding communication latency, available bandwidth, flexibility, and coverage range. On the other hand, cybersecurity techniques and solutions applied in SATCOM links should be updated to reflect the substantial advancements in attacker capabilities characterizing the last two decades. However, business urgency and opportunities are leading operators towards challenging system trade-offs, resulting in an increased attack surface and a general relaxation of the available security services. In this paper, we tackle the cited problems and present a comprehensive survey on the link-layer security threats, solutions, and challenges faced when deploying and operating SATCOM systems.Specifically, we classify the literature on security for SATCOM systems into two main branches, i.e., physical-layer security and cryptography schemes.Then, we further identify specific research domains for each of the identified branches, focusing on dedicated security issues, including, e.g., physical-layer confidentiality, anti-jamming schemes, anti-spoofing strategies, and quantum-based key distribution schemes. For each of the above domains, we highlight the most essential techniques, peculiarities, advantages, disadvantages, lessons learned, and future directions.Finally, we also identify emerging research topics whose additional investigation by Academia and Industry could further attract researchers and investors, ultimately unleashing the full potential behind ubiquitous satellite communications.Comment: 72 page

SpreadMeNot: A Provably Secure and Privacy-Preserving Contact Tracing Protocol

A plethora of contact tracing apps have been developed and deployed in several countries around the world in the battle against Covid-19. However, people are rightfully concerned about the security and privacy risks of such applications. To this end, the contribution of this work is twofold. First, we present an in-depth analysis of the security and privacy characteristics of the most prominent contact tracing protocols, under both passive and active adversaries. The results of our study indicate that all protocols are vulnerable to a variety of attacks, mainly due to the deterministic nature of the underlying cryptographic protocols. Our second contribution is the design and implementation of SpreadMeNot, a novel contact tracing protocol that can defend against most passive and active attacks, thus providing strong (provable) security and privacy guarantees that are necessary for such a sensitive application. Our detailed analysis, both formal and experimental, shows that SpreadMeNot satisfies security, privacy, and performance requirements, hence being an ideal candidate for building a contact tracing solution that can be adopted by the majority of the general public, as well as to serve as an open-source reference for further developments in the field