The Armeo Spring as training tool to improve upper limb functionality in multiple sclerosis: a pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Few research in multiple sclerosis (MS) has focused on physical rehabilitation of upper limb dysfunction, though the latter strongly influences independent performance of activities of daily living. Upper limb rehabilitation technology could hold promise for complementing traditional MS therapy. Consequently, this pilot study aimed to examine the feasibility of an 8-week mechanical-assisted training program for improving upper limb muscle strength and functional capacity in MS patients with evident paresis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A case series was applied, with provision of a training program (3×/week, 30 minutes/session), supplementary on the customary maintaining care, by employing a gravity-supporting exoskeleton apparatus (Armeo Spring). Ten high-level disability MS patients (Expanded Disability Status Scale 7.0-8.5) actively performed task-oriented movements in a virtual real-life-like learning environment with the affected upper limb. Tests were administered before and after training, and at 2-month follow-up. Muscle strength was determined through the Motricity Index and Jamar hand-held dynamometer. Functional capacity was assessed using the TEMPA, Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) and 9-Hole Peg Test (9HPT).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Muscle strength did not change significantly. Significant gains were particularly found in functional capacity tests. After training completion, TEMPA scores improved (<it>p </it>= 0.02), while a trend towards significance was found for the 9HPT (<it>p </it>= 0.05). At follow-up, the TEMPA as well as ARAT showed greater improvement relative to baseline than after the 8-week intervention period (<it>p </it>= 0.01, <it>p </it>= 0.02 respectively).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results of present pilot study suggest that upper limb functionality of high-level disability MS patients can be positively influenced by means of a technology-enhanced physical rehabilitation program.</p

How a Diverse Research Ecosystem Has Generated New Rehabilitation Technologies: Review of NIDILRR’s Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers

Over 50 million United States citizens (1 in 6 people in the US) have a developmental, acquired, or degenerative disability. The average US citizen can expect to live 20% of his or her life with a disability. Rehabilitation technologies play a major role in improving the quality of life for people with a disability, yet widespread and highly challenging needs remain. Within the US, a major effort aimed at the creation and evaluation of rehabilitation technology has been the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. As envisioned at their conception by a panel of the National Academy of Science in 1970, these centers were intended to take a “total approach to rehabilitation”, combining medicine, engineering, and related science, to improve the quality of life of individuals with a disability. Here, we review the scope, achievements, and ongoing projects of an unbiased sample of 19 currently active or recently terminated RERCs. Specifically, for each center, we briefly explain the needs it targets, summarize key historical advances, identify emerging innovations, and consider future directions. Our assessment from this review is that the RERC program indeed involves a multidisciplinary approach, with 36 professional fields involved, although 70% of research and development staff are in engineering fields, 23% in clinical fields, and only 7% in basic science fields; significantly, 11% of the professional staff have a disability related to their research. We observe that the RERC program has substantially diversified the scope of its work since the 1970’s, addressing more types of disabilities using more technologies, and, in particular, often now focusing on information technologies. RERC work also now often views users as integrated into an interdependent society through technologies that both people with and without disabilities co-use (such as the internet, wireless communication, and architecture). In addition, RERC research has evolved to view users as able at improving outcomes through learning, exercise, and plasticity (rather than being static), which can be optimally timed. We provide examples of rehabilitation technology innovation produced by the RERCs that illustrate this increasingly diversifying scope and evolving perspective. We conclude by discussing growth opportunities and possible future directions of the RERC program

Metatypical basal cell carcinoma: a clinical review

Background. Metatypical cell carcinoma can be considered as a new entity of skin cancer, being an intermediate typology between basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas. The behaviour of the metatypical cell carcinoma lies between these two varieties of skin cancer. It is difficult to perform a differential diagnosis based on morphological and clinical features - therefore it is only possible by accurate histology. Methods. The authors have retrospectively analysed clinical records of 240 patients who were affected by metatypical skin cancer and who were treated by surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Results. MTC affected more males than females (62.5% vs 37.5%) than males. The most affected site was the cervicofacial area, 71.7%; then the trunk, 10%; the limbs, 9.6%; the scalp 3.7%; and other regions 5%. A recurrence occurred in 24 cases (10%), mainly in head and neck area. Conclusion. In this manuscript, the authors have emphasised the importance of conducting a differential diagnosis, and the importance of the specific treatment for metatypical skin cancer, even though more clinical studies and long-term follow-ups are required before establishing specific guidelines. © 2008 Tarallo et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Upper limb rehabilitation using robotic exoskeleton systems: a systematic review

Exoskeleton assisted therapy has been reported as a significant reduction in impairment and gain in functional abilities of stroke patients. In this paper, we conduct a systematic review on the upper limb rehabilitation using robotic exoskeleton systems. This review is based on typical mechanical structures and control strategies for exoskeletons in clinical rehabilitation conditions. A variety of upper limb exoskeletons are classified and reviewed according to their rehabilitation joints. Special attentions are paid to the performance control strategies and mechanism designs in clinical trials and to promote the adaptability to different patients and conditions. Finally, we analyze and highlight the current research gaps and the future directions in this field. We intend to offer informative resources and reliable guidance for relevant researcher’s further studies, and exert a far-reaching influence on the development of advanced upper limb exoskeleton robotic systems

The thiosemicarbazone Me2NNMe2 induces paraptosis by disrupting the ER thiol redox homeostasis based on protein disulfide isomerase inhibition

Due to their high biological activity, thiosemicarbazones have been developed for treatment of diverse diseases, including cancer, resulting in multiple clinical trials especially of the lead compound Triapine. During the last years, a novel subclass of anticancer thiosemicarbazones has attracted substantial interest based on their enhanced cytotoxic activity. Increasing evidence suggests that the double-dimethylated Triapine derivative Me2NNMe2 differs from Triapine not only in its efficacy but also in its mode of action. Here we show that Me2NNMe2- (but not Triapine)-treated cancer cells exhibit all hallmarks of paraptotic cell death including, besides the appearance of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-derived vesicles, also mitochondrial swelling and caspase-independent cell death via the MAPK signaling pathway. Subsequently, we uncover that the copper complex of Me2NNMe2 (a supposed intracellular metabolite) inhibits the ER-resident protein disulfide isomerase, resulting in a specific form of ER stress based on disruption of the Ca2+ and ER thiol redox homeostasis. Our findings indicate that compounds like Me2NNMe2 are of interest especially for the treatment of apoptosis-resistant cancer and provide new insights into mechanisms underlying drug-induced paraptosis. © 2018, The Author(s)

Movement distributions of stroke survivors exhibit distinct patterns that evolve with training

BACKGROUND: While clinical assessments provide tools for characterizing abilities in motor-impaired individuals, concerns remain over their repeatability and reliability. Typical robot-assisted training studies focus on repetition of prescribed actions, yet such movement data provides an incomplete account of abnormal patterns of coordination. Recent studies have shown positive effects from self-directed movement, yet such a training paradigm leads to challenges in how to quantify and interpret performance. METHODS: With data from chronic stroke survivors (n = 10, practicing for 3 days), we tabulated histograms of the displacement, velocity, and acceleration for planar motion, and examined whether modeling of distributions could reveal changes in available movement patterns. We contrasted these results with scalar measures of the range of motion. We performed linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classification with selected histogram features to compare predictions versus actual subject identifiers. As a basis of comparison, we also present an age-matched control group of healthy individuals (n = 10, practicing for 1 day). RESULTS: Analysis of range of motion did not show improvement from self-directed movement training for the stroke survivors in this study. However, examination of distributions indicated that increased multivariate normal components were needed to accurately model the patterns of movement after training. Stroke survivors generally exhibited more complex distributions of motor exploration compared to the age-matched control group. Classification using linear discriminant analysis revealed that movement patterns were identifiable by individual. Individuals in the control group were more difficult to identify using classification methods, consistent with the idea that motor deficits contribute significantly to unique movement signatures. CONCLUSIONS: Distribution analysis revealed individual patterns of abnormal coordination in stroke survivors and changes in these patterns with training. These findings were not apparent from scalar metrics that simply summarized properties of motor exploration. Our results suggest new methods for characterizing motor capabilities, and could provide the basis for powerful tools for designing customized therapy

Marcadores e fatores de risco para queratoses actínicas e carcinomas basocelulares: um estudo de caso-controle Risk markers and risk factors for actinic keratosis and basal cell carcinoma: a case-control study

FUNDAMENTOS: A incidência das neoplasias malignas cutâneas vem aumentando em todo o mundo, havendo pouca informação no Brasil sobre seus marcadores e suas lesões precursoras. OBJETIVOS: Identificar fatores de risco e marcadores cutâneos para essas lesões MÉTODOS: Caso-controle aninhado num estudo de prevalência de base populacional com adultos com idade igual ou superior a 50 anos, moradores da zona urbana de Pelotas. No estudo de prevalência aplicou-se um questionário com questões específicas para rastreamento de possíveis lesões cutâneas malignas ou pré-malignas recentes. As pessoas que responderam afirmativamente foram examinadas por dois médicos especialistas (padrão ouro). Uma subamostra daqueles que responderam não às perguntas já mencionadas foi sorteada e também foi examinada. A amostra total ficou constituída por 288 pessoas: 74 casos positivos, conforme o padrão ouro, e 214 controles sem lesões. O número e o tipo de lesão foram avaliados no momento da consulta com os especialistas. O protocolo continha variáveis sociodemográficas, comportamentais e exame dermatológico. A medida de efeito utilizada foi o Odds Ratio (OR), e para o controle dos fatores de confusão utilizou-se a regressão logística, com modelo hierarquizado RESULTADOS: Na análise multivariada permaneceram significativas as seguintes variáveis: idade 80 anos OR=10,21, pele branca OR=4,85, cabelos loiros/vermelhos OR= 3,69; como marcadores de risco: elastose solar OR=4,35, cutis rhomboidalis nuchae OR= 2,88 e mais de 10 melanoses solares no dorso das mãos OR= 6. CONCLUSÃO: Pessoas idosas, com pele clara, cabelos claros, com elastose solar, cutis rhomboidalis nuchae e grande número de melanoses solares nas mãos têm maior risco de apresentar queratoses actínicas e carcinomas basocelulares.<br>BACKGROUND: Incidence of cutaneous neoplasms is increasing worldwide and there is little information from South Brazil about its markers and premalignant lesions. OBJECTIVES: To identify the risk factors and dermatological risk markers for cutaneous malignancies. METHODS: A case-control study nested in a population-based prevalence survey was performed in adults aged 50 living in the urban area of Pelotas. In the prevalence study, a questionnaire was applied to identify possible malignant or premalignant lesions and these subjects were examined by two doctors (gold standard). A sub-sample of the persons who answered No to the questions was also sent to the Ambulatory for the same procedure. The sample was constituted of 288 persons: 74 cases and 214 controls. The number and the type of efflorescence was evaluated at the interview with the doctors. The questionnaire also investigated socioeconomic level, behavioral variables and skin examination. The measure of effect used was the Odds Ratio (OR); and to control confounding factors, logistic regression, with hierarchical pattern, was utilized. RESULTS: In the multivariate analysis, the following variables remained significant: age 80 years (OR = 10.21), white skin (OR = 4.85), blond or red hair (OR = 3.69) and risk markers: solar elastosis (OR = 4.35), cutis rhomboidalis nuchae (OR = 2.88) and more than 10 melanoses on the back of the hands (OR = 6.0). CONCLUSION: Elderly individuals, with fair skin and hair, solar elastosis, cutis rhomboidalis nuchae and a great number of melanoses on the hands, are at high risk for actinic keratosis and basal cell carcinoma