Somatosensory & Motor Research

PURPOSE/AIM: This study aimed to investigate the predictors of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in desk-bound engineers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Fonseca Anamnestic Index (FAI), The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), The Neck Pain and Disability Scale (NPDS), Neck Bournemouth Questionnaire (NBQ) and The Fremantle Neck Awareness Questionnaire-Turkish (FreNAQ-T) were used for TMD severity, pain, disability, neck awareness. RESULTS: The study was conducted with 208 desk-bound engineers...

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND: Osteoporotic fractures are usually painful. However, data on whether osteoporosis without fracture causes pain are insufficient. This study aims to determine whether osteoporosis without fracture is the cause of pain. METHODOLOGY: Patients aged over 18 years who visited the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation outpatient clinic of a tertiary university hospital for dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan and were suitable for dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan without a history of fracture were included in the study...

PURPOSE: Event-related desynchronisation (ERD) and event-related synchronisation (ERS) reflect pain perception and integration of the nociceptive sensory inputs. This may contribute to the understanding of how neurophysiological markers of Knee Osteoarthritis (KOA) patients can differ from control individuals, which would improve aspects such as prediction and prognosis. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of our cohort study (DEFINE cohort), KOA arm, with 71 patients, compared with 65 control participants...

PURPOSE: People with Parkinson's disease (PD) can develop cognitive and physical impairments. There is limited evidence on the association between executive function and physical function in people with PD. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the association between the executive and physical functions in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) by comparing healthy controls. METHOD: Thirty-three patients diagnosed with PD and 33 healthy controls were included in the study...

PURPOSE/AIM OF THE STUDY: Few studies have demonstrated the effects of smartphone use on grip strength and upper extremity function. The present study was purposed to compare smartphone users' grip/lateral pinch strength, pain threshold/tolerance and upper limb function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted with 241 individuals. Participants were divided into three groups with the cut-off values of the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS)...

BACKGROUND: Recent studies revealed the connection between the endurance of neck muscles and pain, neck awareness, and fear of movement in patients with chronic neck pain in literature. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association between cervical, scapular, trunk, and upper extremity muscles' endurance and neck pain, disability, neck awareness, and kinesiophobia in patients with chronic neck pain. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, observational study...

INTRODUCTION: Although it is well known that ganglion impar block (GIB) reduces pain in the short term in patients with chronic coccygodynia, there are insufficient data on long-term treatment outcomes. The aim of this study was to examine the long-term outcomes of patients who underwent GIB for chronic coccygodynia and possible factors that might affect these outcomes. METHODS: The pre-treatment, 1st-hour, and 3rd-week numeric rating scale (NRS) scores of patients who underwent GIB 36-119 (min-max) months ago (between November 2011 and October 2018) due to coccygodynia were obtained from the medical records...

Purpose/Aim: The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between cervical proprioception sense and balance, hand grip strength, cervical region muscle strength and upper extremity functionality in healthy young subjects. Methods: A total of 200 people with a mean age of 20.8 ± 1.8 participated in the study. Cervical proprioception sense of the participants was evaluated with Cervical Joint Position Error Test (CJPET), balance with Biodex Stability System, hand grip strength with hand dynamometer, and upper extremity functionality with Perdue Pegboard test...

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: After two years of virtual meetings, the Barrels Meeting resumed to an in-person format on 10 and 11 November 2022 in La Jolla California. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The meeting focused on the rodent sensorimotor system, with a focus on integrated information from the cellular to the systems level. A series of invited and selected oral presentations were delivered in addition to a poster session. RESULTS: The latest results in the whisker-to-barrel pathway were discussed...

AIM: This study aimed to determine the effects of Kinesio tape applied to the plantar soles on static and dynamic balance in children with Down syndrome (DS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was carried out in children with DS. The participants were grouped as Kinesio Taping (KT) (n = 12, DS) and Sham Taping (ST) (n = 12, DS). The Functional Reach Test (FRT) was used to evaluate functional balance and the Fast-Timed Up and Go (FAST-TUG) test to evaluate functional balance and capacity...

BACKGROUND: The benefits of Blood Flow Restriction Therapy (BFRT) have gained attention in recent times. OBJECTIVE: This review aimed to evaluate the immediate (up to 24 hours), intermediate (up to 6 weeks), and long term (6-10 weeks) effects of BFRT plus exercises (EX) compared to EX only on athletic performance (sprint and jump performance), muscle strength, and hypertrophy in athletes and physically active population. METHODS: A literature search was conducted to select randomized controlled trials across four electronic databases from inception till April 2021...

PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare the effects of basic body awareness therapy (BBAT) and conventional treatments (CT) on balance in patients with chronic neck pain. METHODS: Thirty-five patients with neck pain participated in this randomised two-period crossover trial. Patients were divided into A (BBAT/CT) ( n  = 17) and B (CT/BBAT) ( n  = 18) groups. Group A received BBAT twice a week for 6 weeks, whereas Group B received CT within the same parameters...

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on postural sway in subjects who have recently recovered from infection. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-six female individuals with a mild to moderate history of SARS-CoV-2 ( n  = 25, mean age; 21.13 ± 0.64 years) and healthy sedentary controls ( n  = 31, mean age; 20.09 ± 1...

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to determine whether the 360° turn test is a reliable and valid evaluator that can be used to assess dynamic balance in patients with early (radiographic grades I and II) and advanced (radiographic grades III and IV) knee osteoarthritis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study is a methodological research. For the test time and step count of 360° turn test; test-retest reliability were determined by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient and concurrent validity in patients with knee osteoarthritis was investigated by correlation with the timed up and go test time...

BACKGROUND: Multi-gravitational suspension-based therapy (M-Gravity) is a comprehensive discipline based on the principles of non-gravity, which serves to increase the quality of life and holistic health of the individual with the rehabilitation content of non-pressure inversion therapy and suspension systems. AIMS: To examine the effects of M-Gravity exercise on posture, physical fitness, quality of life, depression, and sleep quality in women without regular exercise habits...

This study assesses human identification of vibrotactile patterns by using real-time discrete event-driven feedback. Previously acquired force and bend sensor data from a robotic hand were used to predict movement-type (stationary, flexion, contact, extension, release) and object-type (no object, hard object, soft object) states by using decision tree (DT) algorithms implemented in a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). Six able-bodied humans performed a 2- and 3-step sequential pattern recognition task in which state transitions were signaled as vibrotactile feedback...

PURPOSE/AIM: Knee muscles strength is an important factor influencing postural stability in patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA). However, there is no evidence regarding the relationship between the knee flexor/extensor strength ratio, which is suggested to be a good indicator of knee stability, and postural stability. We aimed to investigate postural stability and its relation to knee flexor and extensor strength and strength symmetry in women with KOA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-five women with unilateral KOA and thirty-five asymptomatic women were assessed with the Prokin system to collect the following parameters during quiet standing with eyes-open and eyes-closed: ellipse area, perimeter, forward-backward standard deviation, mediolateral standard deviation, the average centre of pressure displacement on the x- and y-axises (COPX and COPY), and the limit of stability (LoS) score...

Aim: The present study investigated whether observing the finger movement influences the stimulus-response process of the subsequent non-aiming finger movement. Methods: Participants directed their eyes to the finger. Three auditory cues with 3 s intervals were provided in each trial. The participants abducted and adducted the index finger in response to the second and third cues; the first response was considered to be the previous response and the second response was considered to be the subsequent response...

Purpose and Method: The purpose of this study was to determine the changes in the Blood Oxygen Level Dependent signal of Primary somatosensory area (S1) and Brodmann area 3 (BA3) per finger and phalanx in comparison to the activation voxel when 250 Hz vibratory stimulation with high sensitivity for the Pacinian corpuscle was given to the four fingers and three phalanges. Results: The result of analyzing the activation voxel showed a significant difference for S1 per finger and phalanx, but for BA3, no significant difference was observed despite a similar trend to S1...

PURPOSE: This study aims to examine the effect of deep tissue massage (DTM) on the myofascial trigger point (MTrP) number, neck range of motion (ROM), pain, disability and quality of life in patients with Myofacial pain syndrome (MPS). METHODS: The study involved patients with MPS between the ages of 20-57. The patients were randomly divided into two groups: the control group ( n  = 40) and the study group ( n  = 40). Transcutaneous Electrical Neuromuscular Stimulation (TENS), hotpack and ultrasound were applied to 40 patients in the control group...