European Journal of Translational Myology最新文献

Dear Editor, We read the interesting letter to the Editor by Dr. Finsterer and appreciated the comments on our work. In this paper we aim at answering to the questions raised. For the first point, Dr Finsterer suggests to add information about Nerve Conduction Studies (NCS) and needle Electromyography (EMG); unfortunately, we are not able to give the neurophysiological investigations acquired during the first admission at the hospital. Anyway, as regards the type of GBS, we can point out that he was diagnosed with an Acute Motor Axonal Neuropathy (AMAN), as stated by previous medical documents. Furthermore, we can confirm that the patient presented cranial nerve involvement, as evidenced by the ascending paralysis which involved trunk and head control, swallowing problems, mimic musculature deficits and respiratory impairment.[...].

This study aimed to investigate the influence of isometric handgrip exercise under different blood flow restriction times on acute responses related to safety and effectiveness in the elderly. Eleven physically active elderly people (70.1 ± 7.1 years) were subjected to three protocols (P1-1m), (P2-30s) and (P3-Control) of isometric handgrip contraction. Hemodynamic markers (SBP, DBP and HR), hematological markers (D-dimer, fibrinogen, APTT and ultrasensitive CRP) and surface electromyography (sEMG) of the flexor digitorum superficialis and extensor digitorum communis muscles were analyzed. The hemodynamic variables showed no significant difference P < 0.05 between the moments before, immediately after, after 15 minutes, and after 30 minutes. The hematological variables showed no significant difference P < 0.05 between the pre- and post-30 minute time points. The sEMG variables showed a significant difference of p< 0.01 at the beginning, middle and end of each series and between the complete series for both muscles analyzed. In line with the aim of this study, we can accept the hypothesis that the P1-1m, P2-30s and P3-Control protocols are safe. However, we reject the hypothesis that the BFR protocols result in greater muscle activation compared to the protocol without BFR.

Stomatognathic apparatus and the postural system interact through biomechanical chains, whose neuromuscular properties influence both gross and fine motor coordination. To evaluate changes in body posture and motor functions in children with malocclusion who are treated with palatal expanders, 8 right-handed children (6-12 years) with unilateral posterior crossbite were enrolled in this non-randomized pragmatic longitudinal study. Fine motor skills tests, handgrip strength, 3D body posture analysis, electromyography, thermography and stabilometry were performed before and after the treatment with a Rapid Palatal Expander (RPE) at T0pre (before using RPE), t0Post (immediately after using RPE), T1 (after 21 days of RPE use) and T3 (after 6 months). The positive effect on malocclusion, as demonstrated by reduced mandibular offset, did not result in changes in motor symmetries across time. Velocity variance of stabilometry was reduced during the treatment. The immediate wearing of device only slightly affected the results. The beneficial results at the occlusal level through RPE were not accompanied by changes at the neuromuscular and postural level. Clinicians and practitioners should consider that orthodontics treatments and devices which are adapted due to neuromuscular and posturometric tests may be task and test-related.

Cervicogenic Headache (CGH) is a secondary type headache, associated with dysfunction in upper cervical segments (C1-C2-C3) and manifested by specific clinical features. It is unilateral, starting from one side of the posterior head and neck, migrating to the front, sometimes associated with ipsilateral arm discomfort and, in addition, neuralgia with ipsilateral conjunctival inection. Our research is based on 29 patients (with average age of 49.78 years ± 10.41 (34-73)) with headache: 19 females and 10 males. We examined the active range of motion (AROM). We used palpatory maneuvers, finding local symptoms (facet joints' tenderness) and symptoms in the segmental territory - cellulalgia in the supraorbital and submandibular region (found by the pinch-roll test - PR-SO and PR-SM). The clinical examination before and immediately after the indirect high velocity low amplitude (HVLA) manipulations, as well as at the end of treatment, showed a significant reduction in the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score, in local symptoms and especially in measurable indicators - skin fold (PR-SO and PR-SM) in mm. (p<0.01 and p<0.001). Our study shows that indirect HVLA-spine manipulations have an invariable place in the treatment of cervicogenic headache.

Retraction: Rafiee B, Karbalay-Doust S, Tabei SMB, Azarpira N, Alaee S, Lohrasbi P, Bahmanpour S. Effects of N-acetylcysteine and metformin treatment on the stereopathological characteristics of uterus and ovary. Eur J Transl Myol 2022; 32(2):10409. DOI: 10.4081/ejtm.2022.10409   The article has been retracted by the authors, in agreement with the Editor-in-Chief, Professor Ugo Carraro, and the Publisher, following an investigation into Figure 6 (specifically panels a and c). Although the image in question was not intentionally manipulated to mislead, and the error stemmed from an inadvertent mistake during figure preparation, the authors fully recognize the seriousness of the issue and the importance of maintaining the highest standards of scientific integrity. The authors apologize for this oversight and for any inconvenience it may have caused to the editorial board, reviewers, and readers, and are committed to learning from this experience and reinforcing stricter internal review processes to prevent such issues in future publications.

Upper limb impairment occurs in approximately 80% of stroke survivors, with altered scapular kinematics playing a key role in dysfunction. Serratus anterior weakness post-stroke contributes to abnormal scapular motion, limiting shoulder and arm function. This study explored whether Electrical Stimulation (ES) could immediately enhance serratus anterior activity in individuals with post-stroke hemiplegia. A pre-post intervention design was used involving 19 individuals within three months post-stroke. Surface Electromyography (sEMG) recorded serratus anterior activity during a forward reach task. The Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) was also administered. Participants received 20 minutes of ES targeting the serratus anterior, after which sEMG and FMA were reassessed. Wilcoxon signed rank test compared pre- and post-intervention sEMG values. Statistical analysis showed a significant change in the area under the curve value(p < 0.01) but no significant change in RMS value. There was no change in FMA scale. Electrical stimulation showed significant changes in the muscle activity of the serratus anterior, indicating a reduction in the cost of the muscle work done during the forward reach task.

Ligament and tendon injuries are one of the major health concerns that affect over 1.71 billion people around the world. They cause functional limitations and affect the quality of life of people. As conventional methods have their limitations, Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is becoming a potential solution for the improvement and acceleration of the healing process in ligament and tendon injuries. This systematic review aims to evaluate efficacy and safety of HBOT for ligament and tendon injuries. This systematic review provides a comprehensive analysis by following PRISMA guidelines. We looked for articles published between March 1999 and May 2024 across 6 databases. The articles included investigated the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy to treat ligament or tendon injuries. Animal studies, as well as human studies, were included in this review. Studies were evaluated for HBOT, and if they were not related or with insufficient data, they were excluded. Risk of bias has been assessed using the ROBINS-I tool. The studies measured outcomes across functional, histological, biomechanical, physicochemical, and even radiological aspects. A total of 13 studies were included in the review, with 693 participants. This study has analyzed the effectiveness of HBOT in two ways, namely, standalone treatment and combined methods like HBOT and other methods like platelet growth factor, steroid injections, intermittent oxygen therapy, or platelet-rich plasma. The pressure observed in this study is between 1.3 to 2.8 atmospheres absolute. The findings suggest that HBOT, whether used alone or as a complementary treatment, enhanced healing compared to controls. The ROBINS-I tool suggested low risk of bias for the majority of studies. Positive impacts in mechanical and histological outcomes were observed in both animal and human studies, such as increased collagen density, fiber alignment, and synthesis. The review highlights the potential of HBOT to especially reduce graft rejection post-ACL reconstruction, enhance functional recovery, and accelerate tendon healing. HBOT seems to be a safe and effective method for speeding up the healing process of tendons and ligaments. But, there is a need for more studies with more number of population for analyzing the effect of HBOT in a long run. It is necessary to make a standard protocol for the HBOT treatment method.

Inflammatory Myopathies (IM) encompass a diverse group of systemic autoimmune muscle disorders, not easy to diagnose. Concentric-macro EMG is supposed to reflect electrical activity of the entire motor unit. It could help in electrophysiological characterization of inflammatory myopathies and recognizing earlier myopathic changes. Conventional EMG in our IM patients showed myopathic changes in all the cases, so it could be a golden tool for diagnosis. The degree of abnormalities was variable in different muscles in concentric macro EMG. Myopathic changes using concentric macro EMG was not so advanced as those seen in chronic stable relapsing phase. Pooling up the results of the conventional EMG, muscle enzyme tests, muscle ultrasound , and Con-Mac will give optimal results for diagnosis and could help in follow up of patients with IM.

The application of implantable biomaterials in reconstructive grafting is a common practice in surgical fields such as orthopedics, maxillary and plastic surgery. This study explores the regenerative response of skeletal muscle to a porous bovine collagen-based matrix (Osteovit®) in a volumetric muscle loss injury model. Forty male Wistar rats were divided into four groups. Normal control underwent no procedure and regenerative control had mepivacaine injected in the tibialis anterior muscle to provoke a standard regenerative response. In the other two groups, a volumetric defect was created in the tibialis anterior muscle; the fibrosis control had no treatment, while the collagen-scaffolding group had a bone substitution matrix implanted. Animals were sacrificed at 21, 28, and 60 days post-procedure for histological, histochemical, immunohistochemical and histomorphometry analysis to evaluate muscle architecture and myogenic regenerative response. Significant changes in tissue architecture among groups, with a notable emphasis on the integration of the collagen scaffold, were demonstrated. This was also confirmed at the histomorphometry analysis, which found differences at the cross-sectional area, minor diameter and form factor values between groups The bone substitution matrix did not inhibit regeneration but promoted an abnormal one. This can be explained by the excessive formation of connective tissue, which led to the genesis of intramuscular tendons that may have interfered with the normal development of regenerative muscle fibers. The findings highlight the need for further investigation into the cellular mechanisms underlying skeletal muscle regeneration in response to implantable biomaterials.

In recent decades, ultrasound-guided percutaneous infiltrative procedures have gained prominence in treating musculoskeletal disorders, providing enhanced accuracy over traditional "blind" techniques. This study examines the utility of the Power Doppler ultrasound technique, specifically the "Jet sign," in identifying needle placement during infiltrative treatments. A retrospective analysis was conducted involving 5,376 patients where procedures were performed under ultrasound guidance from January 2014 to January 2022. While the needle tip was successfully visualized in 7% of cases, the Jet sign facilitated accurate localization in 368 instances. This technique capitalizes on the creation of a high-pressure fluid flow, enabling real-time monitoring and precise targeting of the therapeutic agent while minimizing complications. The findings underscore the effectiveness of the Jet sign in enhancing procedural accuracy and suggest its incorporation into clinical practice to optimize outcomes in ultrasound-assisted infiltrative therapies.