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Background and aim: This study was aimed to examine the reliability of a developed device measuring "arch height ratio" index.

Materials and Methods: 40 feet (the right and left foot of 20 subjects) were measured. Foot length was measured from posterior aspect of calcaneus to the tip of longest toe and dorsum height was measured at the midpoint of total foot length. All measurements were assessed in three weight bearing conditions of 10, 50 and 90 percent of total body weight on three occasions (10 minutes and five days after the first measurement) by a single rater. Finally the arch height ratio index was calculated.

Results: The ICC values in different conditions of 10, 50 and 90 percent of total body weight in 10 minutes after the first measurement were calculated 0.96, 0.97 and 0.92 and in five days after the first measurement were calculated 0.97, 0.97 and 0.91. Minimal detectable change values of arch height ratio index in all conditions of measurement were 0.01.

Conclusion: Simplicity of usage, low cost and high reliability of this device is highly recommended for clinical and research use. 

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Background and aim: The precise control of arm kinematics and kinetics as well as interaction of the arm with the external word, is an essential condition to perform skillful motor actions. Gravity has significant effect on spatial orientation, proprioception, displacement, start and stop of hand movements. The purpose of this research was to study the effect of movement direction variation in relation to gravity on generalized motor program recruitment in fast single joint elbow movement by use of surface electromyography.
Materials and methods: Fifteen volunteer students (mean age 24.8± 3.8 years) without sensory motor impairments participate in this study. Ninety percent of full range of motion at the elbow joint was used as goal degree. Subjects asked to do aimed elbow flexion as fast as possible in seven different direction in relation to gravity. While they were performing movements, surface electromyography was recorded from biceps and lateral head of triceps muscles. Relative timing, relative activity and sequence of contraction were derived from RMS. Data were analyzed by using repeated measure variance analysis.
Results: Muscle activation patterns were different in three positions from rest. There were significant difference between relative activity (p<0.001) and relative timing (p<0.003) in some positions. In fourth position, sequence of muscle contraction was different in seven subjects.
Conclusion: It seems that change in movement direction in relation to gravity is one of effective parameters in movement planning and execution and it can recruit different generalized motor program.

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Background: Flexible flat foot is a congenital common deformity in lower extremity associated with ligamentus laxity. This deformity may cause hammer toe, heel spur, inflammation of achille tendon, early muscle fatigue during sport, foot imbalance and pain in leg, knee and hip. The use of insole with medial arch support considered as one of the common treatments for patients. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a composite insole, Ethyl Vinyl Acetate (EVA) with Poron layer on ground reaction force on subjects with flexible flat foot in comparison with common EVA insole.

Materials and Methods: Fifty two subjects (14 Male and 38 female) between 18-40 years of age with flexible flat foot participated in this study. Twenty six subjects received Poron insole (EVA with Poron layer) and 26 subjects received common EVA insole. After assessment each subject asked to walk with normal speed across two force plate in two conditions, walking with insole and shoe and walking without insole. Then each subject asked to use insole for forty hours during two weeks. Vertical ground reaction force in the first session and after two weeks was assessed.

Results: Impact force and first peak of vertical ground reaction force (F₁) with Poron insole in comparison with shoe significantly increased in second session (P<0.05). The second peak (F₃) with common insole in comparison with shoe significantly increased in second session (P<0.05). Significant reduction was noted in first peak (F1) with common insole in second session in comparison with first session (P<0.05). There was no observable significant difference in two groups before and after intervention.

Conclusion: The results of this preliminary study show that both insoles change vertical ground reaction force in comparison with shoe alone. But using a composite Poron Layer on EVA insole has not demonstrated a significant difference with common arch support insoles. Therefore application of Poron Silicon layer on EVA insole by itself can not show a significant reduction of ground reaction force.

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 Background and Aim:  Because of high incidence of hand injuries and the need for a quantitative method that provides measures of patient improvement in treatment period, a precise and easy-to-apply quantitative procedure is necessary. As a first step in validating of such a method, the intersession repeatability of quantified measures was assessed in this study. 

Materials and Methods: Measurement of hand drawing skills by drawing circle shape in two speeds (preferred and maximum) and spiral shape just in a preferred voluntary speed with two repetitions for each subject was assessed in 15 subjects. Digital data was recorded by a Tablet PC using special software with average sampling rate of 120 Hz.

Results: The quantified variables computed for circle and spiral drawing tests with preferred speed were reliable (0.55 < ICC < 0.85), so they can be used for drawing quantifications. Results of drawing circles with maximum speed were not reliable (ICC<0.5).

 Conclusion: Repeatability analysis revealed that measures based on drawing circles with maximum speed are not repeatable and cannot be used for progress monitoring. This may be due to large variation in providing maximum drawing speed during test time. On the other hand, spiral and circle drawing parameters with preferred speed had a better repeatability and can be used for quantification of hand drawings in researches. 

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Background and Aim: Given the biomechanical differences between over ground and treadmill walking, it is expected that the contraction of muscles should be also different, so exercise training in these scenarios may have various effects on trunk muscles. The aim of this study was to compare amplitude and duration of activation of trunk muscles during over ground and treadmill walking to prescribe a suitable exercise mode considering the special circumstances of each person.

Materials and Methods: Nineteen healthy 20-40 years old male with sedentary life style were selected via simple sampling. Surface electromyography of rectus abdominis, external oblique, longissimus and multifidus muscles were recorded.

 Results: In each gait cycle, there was not statistically significant differences on duration of trunk muscles activity between treadmill and over ground walking. The mean amplitude of these muscles was greater on treadmill in comparison with over ground and this difference was statistically significant for rectus abdominis (P=0.005), longissimus (P=0.018) and multifidus (P=0.044) muscles.

Conclusion: Stabilizing role of trunk muscles during walking causes them to be active throughout the entire gait cycle. The increased muscle amplitude on treadmill might show that more motor units may be recruited during the contraction, which is helpful in prescribing the appropriate type of exercise especially to patients who have trunk muscles weakness. 

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Background and Aim: Given the biomechanical differences between over ground and treadmill walking, it is expected that the contraction of muscles should be also different, so exercise training in these scenarios may have various effects on trunk muscles. The aim of this study was to compare amplitude and duration of activation of trunk muscles during over ground and treadmill walking to prescribe a suitable exercise mode considering the special circumstances of each person. 

Materials and Methods: Nineteen healthy 20-40 years old male with sedentary life style were selected via simple sampling. Surface electromyography of rectus abdominis, external oblique, longissimus and multifidus muscles were recorded.

Results: In each gait cycle, there was not statistically significant differences on duration of trunk muscles activity between treadmill and over ground walking. The mean amplitude of these muscles was greater on treadmill in comparison with over ground and this difference was statistically significant for rectus abdominis (P=0.005), longissimus (P=0.018) and multifidus (P=0.044) muscles.

Conclusion: Stabilizing role of trunk muscles during walking causes them to be active throughout the entire gait cycle. The increased muscle amplitude on treadmill might show that more motor units may be recruited during the contraction, which is helpful in prescribing the appropriate type of exercise especially to patients who have trunk muscles weakness.  

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Background and Aim: Optic neuritis causes some deficits in visual function in the affected eye and there are some differences in these functions between the affected and unaffected eyes. The purpose of the study is to compare visual functions of both eyes to demonstrate the minimum and maximum value of affection in patients with acute unilateral optic neuritis.
Materials and Methods: Thirty patients (23 female, 7 male aged between 18 and 45 years) who 22 patients with retro-bulbar and 8 patients with anterior optic neuritis, enrolled in the study and their affected and unaffected eyes underwent visual function assessments. Visual acuity (VA), contrast sensitivity (CS), color vision (CV), and visual field (VF) (consist of MA and PSD) were examined for both eyes of all the patients and the significance of the differences between two eyes were calculated and compared by Independent T-test.
Results: According to our results, all the investigated visual functions consist of VA (t-test, t=7.29, P=0.00), CS (t-test, t=9.20, P=0.00), CV (t-test, t= -21.95, P=0.00), MD (t-test, t=5.29, P=0.01) except PSD (t-test, t=0.67, P=0.71) were affected by optic neuritis and there was a significant difference between the affected and unaffected eyes (P<0.01). The most significant difference were found for contrast sensitivity with letters (P=0.00) and there wasn`t any significance in the difference between two eyes for PSD parameter in VF (P=0.71).
Conclusion: Considering the most significant difference of contrast sensitivity between affected and unaffected eyes in patients with acute unilateral optic neuritis, it is suggested to pay more attention to the test in evaluating, diagnosis and follow up patients with acute unilateral optic neuritis.

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Background and Aim: Many studies investigated the effect of ankle-foot orthosis on reducing the incidence of sprain. In this study the influence of elastic and semirigid stirrup type orthosis on the onset latency of peroneus longus muscle activity as the most important support of ankle- foot region in response to sudden perturbation was assessed in healthy group and athletes with functional ankle instability.

 

Materials and Methods: Thirteen healthy female athletes and 10 female athletes with functional ankle instability (17 to 27 years old) were perturbed unexpectedly by a custom made ankle perturbation system in frontal plane under three conditions of without orthotics, using elastic orthosis, and using semirigid stirrup-type orthosis. Simultaneous recording of electrical activity of peronus longus muscle was performed with surface electromyography.

 

Results: The results showed the significant differences between muscular latency of injured and control groups without orthosis (P=0.018). The onset latency reduced using each type of the orthoses in injured group but it was not significant (P>0.05).

 

Conclusion: Although the latency time of peroneus longus muscle response delay didn’t show significant reduction using orthoses in injured group, it seems that using orthoses leads to proprioception improvement and sensiomotor control increasement by stimulation of cutaneous mechanoreceptors.

 

Key words: Functional ankle instability, Invertory perturbation, Electromyography, Orthosis

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Background and Aim: One of the impaired senses in patients with chronic hemiparesis is the sole cutaneous sense. The role of this sense in maintaining the functional balance and mobility is still controversial in these patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the threshold of sole cutaneous sense and functional balance and mobility tests in patient with chronic hemiparesis.

 

Material and Methods: In this correlational study, seventeen chronic stroke patients by mean age of 59.10 (13.31) years and mean time after injury of 31.70 (23.61) months were selected by simple non– probability method. Functional Reach with ankle and hip strategy (FR), Step Test (ST) in affected and non- affected foot, Bend– Reach test (BR), Timed Up and Go test (TUG) and Berg Balance Scale (BBS) were used for assessment of functional balance and mobility and Semmes- Weinstein monofilaments test was used to measure the cutaneous sense of seven different points of sole in affected and non– affected foot.

 

Results: The main effect of foot (affected and non– affected foot) and points (seven different points of sole) of cutaneous sense threshold was significant (P˂0.0001) and interaction effect of foot ˣ points not significant (P=0.2).

The cutaneous sense threshold in all seven points of affected sole showed significant (p˂0.05) low to high correlation (r= 0.24-0.81) with all of functional balance and mobility tests. There was not significant correlation between cutaneous sense threshold in seven points of non- affected foot and any of functional balance and mobility tests, with the exception of cutaneous sense threshold of the little toe floor with total, dynamic and static score of BBS, FR with ankle and hip strategy and TUG; cutaneous sense threshold of big toe with static score of BBS and FR with hip strategy; and medial border of sole with static score of BBS and FR with ankle strategy.

 

Conclusion: The cutaneous sense threshold of affected sole has a more correlation with functional balance and mobility tests. The cutaneous sense threshold of sole in big toe and medial border points has a significant role in functional balance and mobility tests in patients with hemiparesis.

 

Keywords: Functional balance and mobility, Cutaneous sense threshold, Hemiparesis

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Background and Aim: ACL injury is one of the most common sport injuries which undergo reconstructive surgery. Electromyography or recording of muscles’ electrical activity is a suitable means to assess changes in motor control system output. The goal of this study is to compare the lower limb muscles EMG activity during drop landing in individuals after ACL reconstruction and healthy subjects.

Materials and Methods: Eleven men who had undergone ACL reconstruction 6 to 24 months ago (Age 29±6 years old) and 11 healthy men (Age 28±2 years old) participated in the study. Amount of electrical activity for tibialis anterior, vastus medialis, vastus lateralis, semitendinosus and biceps femoris muscles was recorded using surface electrodes during drop landing and calculated for two time intervals. The amount of activity was measured in -150 to +50 and +50 to +180 intervals in relation to the landing moment. Subjective IKDC questionnaire and cross-over hop functional test were used to determine the subjective and objective functional level.  Independent t test was used to determine between-group statistical differences.

Results: Feed forward activity of semitendinosus (P=.041) and biceps femoris (P=.008) muscles were significantly higher in ACLR group and feedback activity of vastus medialis (P=.03) muscles was significantly lower in ACLR group. Healthy individuals showed higher score on both the functional test and IKDC questionnaire. (P<.0005)

Conclusion: Individuals who had undergone reconstructive surgery of ACL showed different muscular activity compared to healthy subjects and closer to ACL deficient individuals 6 months after surgery and routine rehabilitation.

Keywords: Anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, Electromyography, Neuromuscular control