Search Results (6)

Background and Objectives: Postural instability is a key feature of Parkinson’s disease (PD), contributing to disability and increased risk of falls. Pharmacological treatments are important, but it is necessary to integrate them with rehabilitation programs that provide benefits for gait and balance. Focal muscle vibration (fMV) has been proposed as a proprioceptive-oriented intervention to enhance postural control, but evidence in PD remains heterogeneous. This observational, retrospective, and controlled pilot study aimed to evaluate whether the integration of fMV into a standardized rehabilitation program provides additional benefits for balance, gait, and fall risk compared to standardized exercise alone in patients with PD. Materials and Methods: Medical records of 35 outpatients with Parkinson’s disease (Hoehn & Yahr stage II–III) were reviewed. All practiced a standardized rehabilitation exercise group program. Of these, 18 patients agreed to undergo fMV before the exercise sessions (fMV group); 17 patients did not accept fMV due to personal organizational reasons (EG) and were considered a retrospective control group. In detail, (i) the fMV group receivdc focal muscle vibration during the first three weeks in addition to a standardized group rehabilitation exercise program, and (ii) the EG underwent a standardized rehabilitation program only. Both groups then completed an identical 16-week standardized rehabilitation program. Functional outcomes were assessed at baseline (T0) and after one month (T1). Results: Groups were homogeneous at baseline. The fMV group showed significant improvements in SPPB (from 8.16 ± 1.6 to 10.2 ± 1.6 p < 0.001) in the Tinetti total (from 18.38 ± 3.2 to 21.5 ± 2.9 p < 0.05). Stabilometric analysis revealed a significant improvement in the Romberg Quotient in the fMV group (p < 0.005). Conclusions: A short time-limited fMV intervention may act as a sensory primer, enhancing the effects of a subsequent standardized rehabilitation program in PD. Full article

Background/Objective: Sensory integration (SI) involves the central processing of visual, vestibular, and somatosensory inputs. It plays a key role in regulating movements such as gait. However, aging may impair these systems and SI, altering the gait. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aim to examine the relationship between gait parameters and SI during standing in healthy older adults. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted in the Web of Science, PubMed, MEDLINE, and PEDro databases. Correlation coefficients between gait speed, sway (area and/or velocity) while standing under different SI conditions, and quotients were extracted. The Romberg Quotient (RQ) and Proprioception Quotient (PQ) were used to assess reliance on visual and somatosensory systems, respectively. The studies were grouped by condition, quotient, and outcome measures for the meta-analysis. Results: Thirteen studies (n = 719, mean age 72.5 years) were included. There were significant associations between gait speed and sway area during standing with eyes open on a stable surface (r: −0.235, p < 0.001), eyes closed on a stable surface (ECS) (r: −0.201, p < 0.001), eyes open on a compliant surface (r: −0.198, p < 0.001), and eyes closed on a compliant surface (r: −0.186, p < 0.004). No associations were found between gait speed and sway velocity in each condition, RQ, and PQ (p > 0.486 for all), except for the ECS (r: −0.149, p: 0.01). Conclusions: This study indicated a partial link between gait speed and SI in older adults. Future research should focus on dynamic SI evaluation to better understand this association. Full article

The primary objective of this study is to present a new technique and library designed to validate the outcomes of numerical methods used for addressing various issues. This paper specifically examines the reverse osmosis (RO) model, a well-known water purification system. A crucial aspect of this problem involves solving an integral that is part of the overall solution. This integral is handled using one of the quadrature integration methods, with a focus on Romberg integration in this study. To manage the number of iterations, as well as to ensure accuracy and minimize errors, we employ the CESTAC method (Controle et Estimation Stochastique des Arrondis de Calculs) alongside the CADNA (Control of Accuracy and Debugging for Numerical Applications) library. By implementing this approach, we aim to achieve not only optimal results, but also the best method step and minimal error, and we aim to address numerical instabilities. The results show that only 16 iterations of the Romberg integration rule will be enough to find the approximate solutions.To demonstrate the efficacy and precision of our proposed method, we conducted two comprehensive comparative studies with the Sinc integration. The first study compares the optimal iteration count, optimal approximation, and optimal error between the single and double exponential decay methods and the Romberg integration technique. The second study evaluates the number of iterations required for convergence within various predefined tolerance values. The findings from both studies consistently indicate that our method outperforms the Sinc integration in terms of computational efficiency. Additionally, these comparative analyses highlight the potential of our approach as a reliable and effective tool for numerical integration. Full article

Background: When integrating visual and somatosensory processing into the subjective postural vertical using the Romberg test, patients with hemiplegic can be sorted into either post-stroke or pushers with unilateral spatial neglect (USN). This study aimed to clarify the characteristics of the integrated processing of the integrated subjective postural vertical (ISPV) with open or closed eyes in patients with hemiplegic and/or pusher with USN. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 91 patients with hemiplegic and 45 with pusher and USN. The outcomes included the ratio and sum of SPV with the eyes closed and open. Statistical analyses were performed using the parametric and/or non-parametric Wilcoxon rank-sum test, Mann–Whitney U test, or chi-square test after the Shapiro–Wilk test. Results: The outcomes in the 91 patients with hemiplegic were as follows: moderate-to-severe ISPV with ratio, 1.64°; ISPV sum (ISPVS), 9.41°. The outcomes in the 45 patients with pusher and USN were as follows: moderate-to-severe, ISPV: 1.35°, and ISPVS: 13.96°. No significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of demographic data or ISPV. However, the number of patients with pusher syndrome was significantly higher in the ISPVS group than in stroke patients with hemiplegic. Conclusions: Adaptation occurs by integrating sensory modalities, and the pusher behavior in patients with USN is characterized by the specific pathophysiology of a two-modality disorder with visual and somatosensory deficits. This study provides key insights into the pathophysiological characteristics of patients with pusher syndrome and USN. Full article

In order to enhance the accuracy of ventilator parameter setting, this paper analyzes two identification methods for respiratory characteristic parameters of non-invasive ventilators and invasive ventilators. For non-invasive ventilators, a respiratory characteristic parameter identification method based on a respiration model is established. In this method, the patient’s respiratory sample set is obtained through non-invasive measurements. Experimental results demonstrate that the mean relative error of pulmonary elastance identification was 14.25%, and the mean relative error of intrapulmonary pressure identification was 12.33% using the Romberg integral algorithm. For chronic patients using non-invasive ventilators, the fault-tolerant space for ventilator parameter setting is large; this method meets the requirement of auxiliary setting of non-invasive ventilator parameters. For invasive ventilators, a respiratory characteristic parameter identification method based on the AVOV–BP neural network is established. In this method, the patient’s respiratory sample set is obtained through real-time invasive measurements. Even with small sample datasets, experimental results show that the mean relative error of pulmonary elastance identification and intrapulmonary pressure identification were both 0.22%. For critically ill patients using invasive ventilators, the fault-tolerant space for ventilator parameter setting is small; this method meets the requirement of auxiliary setting of invasive ventilator parameters. Full article

The matrix logarithm function has applicability in many engineering and science fields. Improvements in its calculation, from the point of view of both accuracy and/or execution time, have a direct impact on these disciplines. This paper describes a new numerical algorithm devoted to matrix logarithm computation and using the Romberg integration method, together with the inverse scaling and squaring technique. This novel method was implemented and compared with three different state-of-the-art codes, all based on Padé approximation. The experimental results, under a heterogeneous matrix test battery, showed that the new method was numerically stable, with an elapsed time midway among the other codes, and it generally offered a higher accuracy. Full article