Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation最新文献

Objectives: This study aims to objectively assess the fall risk and postural balance status of systemic sclerosis (SS) patients and investigate its association with various clinical findings.

Patients and methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted between July 2020 and September 2020. The study included 14 patients (12 females, 2 males; mean age: 48.4±12.3 years; range, 21 to 63 years) diagnosed with SS and a control group of 20 healthy volunteers (17 females, 3 males; mean age: 46.8±9.0 years; range, 25 to 60 years). Demographic and clinical data of the participants were noted. Results of anti-nuclear antibodies and anti-Scl-70 antibodies were recorded. The fall index, indicating fall risk, was determined using a posturography device, and postural stability measurements were performed. The Falls Efficacy Scale-International was used to evaluate fall activity. The modified Rodnan skin score was used to assess the degree of cutaneous involvement in SS.

Results: Fall index results were higher in the SS group (p<0.05). The rate of falls in the past year among SS patients was 7.1%. The SS group showed deviations from the normal population in the postural measurement when eyes closed on a solid surface in normal position with the stability index, eyes closed on a pillow with the stability index, and eyes closed on a solid surface with the head tilted 30° forward with the weight distribution index (p<0.05). Fear of falling scores were higher in diffuse-type SS compared to limited-type SS (p<0.01). No differences were observed in other parameters.

Conclusion: This study revealed impaired postural balance and increased fall risk in SS patients compared to the normal population. Evaluation of postural balance and fall risk in SS patients should be done in the early period, and necessary treatments should be applied.

Objectives: The study aimed to compare the effectiveness of ultrasound-guided corticosteroid injection (CSI) and ultrasound-guided dextrose prolotherapy (DP) in treating patients with plantar fasciitis (PF).

Patients and methods: This single-center, randomized controlled, double-blind trial was conducted with 38 patients (24 females, 14 males; mean age: 48.2±6.1 years; range, 30 to 57 years) with PF between March 10, 2021 and June 10, 2021. Patients with definitive PF fulfilled the eligibility requirements and were included in the study. Block randomization was used to assign each patient to CSI and DP treatment arms. Patients in the CSI and DP treatment arms received methylprednisolone and dextrose, respectively. Lidocaine injection was used for local anesthesia, and ultrasound was used to guide these minimally invasive procedures. Patients were followed up after one (short term) and three months (middle term). Primary outcomes were pain severity and foot function.

Results: In both groups, we detected a significant improvement in pain severity and foot function index in the middle term, which was slightly more profound in the DP group. In contrast to the CSI arm, DP did not appear to alleviate pain in the short term. We observed a waning treatment effectiveness in the CSI arm over time.

Conclusion: Both CSI and DP were effective in treating PF by reducing pain and improving foot function index in the middle term. While CSI ensures better short-term outcomes, its effectiveness tends to wane over time. On the contrary, DP does not provide significant short-term relief but is more effective in the middle term. Further trials are needed to support these findings.

Objectives: This study aims to determine the effect of accompanying lymphedema in patients with breast or genitourinary system cancer on the quality of life and anxiety levels of caregivers of these patients.

Patients and methods: Sixty-three caregivers (37 males, 26 females; mean age: 47.5±14.4 years; range, 20 to 80 years) of patients with breast or genitourinary system cancer and lymphedema, 40 caregivers (21 males, 19 females; mean age: 43.9±15.6 years; range, 18 to 75 years) of patients with breast or genitourinary system cancer without lymphedema, and 52 healthy volunteers (15 males, 37 females; mean age: 37.0±10.8 years; range, 23 to 68 years) as the control group were included in the cross-sectional study between May 10, 2022 and August 10, 2022. Sociodemographic information of the caregivers and information about the cancer diagnosis of the patients were recorded. The anxiety level of the caregivers was assessed with the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), hopelessness level with the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), and quality of life with the Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer (CQOL-C).

Results: There was no statistically meaningful difference between the caregivers of patients with and without lymphedema and the control group regarding anxiety (p=0.818). The hopelessness level was higher in caregivers of patients with lymphedema compared to healthy controls (p=0.011). No statistically meaningful difference was found in CQOL-C burden, disruptiveness, positive adaptation, or financial concerns subscales in caregivers of patients with and without lymphedema (p=0.697, p=0.209, p=0.823, p=0.855, and p=0.257, respectively). Continuous caregiving was negatively associated with the total CQOL-C score in caregivers of patients with lymphedema (p=0.031). Complex decongestive therapy was negatively associated with high BAI and BHS scores (p=0.038 and p=0.034, respectively).

Conclusion: Lymphedema has a negative impact on hopelessness, while complex decongestive therapy has positive effects on anxiety and depression. Continuous caregiving may be considered a risk factor for high total CQOL-C scores.

Objectives: The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of toe-only rocker (TOR) sole shoes on standing balance and lower limb kinematics during walking in older adults.

Patients and methods: This quasi-experimental, repeated measure study was conducted between January 2019 and April 2020. Twenty-two elderly participants (14 males, 8 females; mean age: 64.8±0.5 years; range, 60 to 80 years) were tested wearing a normal shoe (NS), four types of TOR sole shoes with different rocker angles (10°, 20°, 30°, and 40°), and barefoot (BF). Static balance and gait kinematics were measured by a force plate and motion capture system, respectively.

Results: No significant difference was found in all static balance parameters between different TOR types. There was no significant difference in hip joint kinematics between different shoe conditions. Significantly lower knee joint range of motion was observed in the BF condition compared to NS, TOR 10°, and TOR 20° (p<0.05); in TOR 40° compared to NS, TOR 10°, and TOR 20° (p<0.05); and in TOR 30° compared to TOR 20° (p<0.05). Greater ankle range of motion was observed with NS compared to TOR 30° and TOR 40° (p<0.001); in BF compared to NS and different TOR types (p<0.05); and in TOR 10° compared to TOR 30° and TOR 40° (p<0.001).

Conclusion: The increasing rocker angle in TOR had no negative effect on static balance in the elderly. Therefore, TOR may be used in healthy elderly to decrease movement in the sagittal plane of the ankle joint without disturbance in static balance.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the fate of the articles after they were rejected from the Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (Turk J Phys Med Rehab).

Materials and methods: Between January 2016 and December 2021, rejected manuscripts by the Turk J Phys Med Rehab were retrospectively analyzed and whether these rejected articles were published in another journal was identified. For the manuscripts published elsewhere, article type, change in the article name, and the number and order of authors were noted. The index of the new journal, the impact factor for SCI-E journals and journal quartile were recorded. Whether the journal was a national journal/international journal, a specialty or non-specialty journal, and whether the impact factors were higher, lower, or the same as Turk J Phys Med Rehab were evaluated.

Results: Totally, 76% of 1,051 rejected articles were accepted for publication in another journal, after an average of 13.73 months. The name of the article, the order of the authors, and the number of the authors remained unchanged in 71.4%, 79.3%, and 80.8% of the articles, respectively. A total of 69.9% of the journals were non-specialty journals and 61.8% were general international medical journals. In addition, 32.6% of the journals were included in the SCI-E, and 70.9% of the articles in SCI-E were included in the Q4 and Q3 scope. The impact factor with 51.9% were lower or the same with the Turk J Phys Med Rehab.

Conclusion: Our study results showed that a high percentage of the articles rejected by the Turk J Phys Med Rehab found a place in another journal later, and that non-specialty journals that accept general articles were more prominent in the selection of journal. The fact that an article rejected from a journal can be corrected and amended in accordance with valuable reviewer comments by improving its academic quality and seeking success in other journals may be promising for researchers who submit their articles to journals.

It is known that physical activity and exercise have many effects on patients with rheumatoid arthritis, such as reducing pain, stiffness, and fatigue and having positive effects on the development of complications related to the disease. However, despite all this information, the level of exercise and physical activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is lower than in healthy individuals. This may be due to reasons such as thinking that the disease will worsen, not having enough information about exercises, and not being supported enough by healthcare professionals and family in this regard. This review summarized the basic effects of exercises and recommended exercise programs.

Objectives: This study aims to examine the effects of whole-body vibration (WBV) therapy + home-based exercise (HBE) therapy; physical therapy modalities (PTMs)+HBE; and WBV+PTM+HBE on pain severity, physical performance, and functional status in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Patients and methods: This single-center, single-blind, three-armed, prospective, randomized-controlled study included a total of 65 patients (3 males, 62 females; mean age: 56.0±6.3 years; range, 45 to 70 years) who were diagnosed with knee OA between February 2014 and July 2014. The participants were randomly divided into three groups. Group 1 (n=22) received WBV+HBE, Group 2 (n=22) received WBV+PTM+HBE, and Group 3 (n=21) received PTM+HBE alone. The primary outcome measure was functional physical performance, while the secondary outcome measures were pain intensity and functional status. All the measurements were evaluated by a single blinded investigator before and after treatment.

Results: All the functional physical performance tests (p<0.01), pain intensity (p<0.01), and functional status (p<0.01) showed statistically significant effects in terms of time and group × time interaction, but no significant difference was observed among the groups (p>0.05). We observed statistically and clinically significant improvement in all of the functional physical performance tests, pain, and functional status for Group 2. There was a statistically and clinically significant improvement only in the functional physical performance tests for Group 1. In Group 3, no clinical or statistical significance was achieved in any outcome measurements.

Conclusion: Treatment program consisting of WBV+PTM+HBE can yield clinically and statistically favorable results by improving all of the pain, functional status and physical performance parameters of the patients with knee OA, while WBV+HBE can be clinically and statistically effective only in the physical performance parameters of the patients.

Objectives: The study aimed to compare the effectiveness of home exercise and two different kinesio taping (KT) techniques applied in addition to home exercise in patients with sacroiliac joint dysfunction (SIJD).

Patients and methods: This three-arm, randomized controlled trial was conducted with 99 patients (84 females, 15 males; mean age: 27.1±10.7 years; range, 18 to 64 years) with SIJD between December 1, 2016, and July 20, 2024. The patients were randomized into one of the three groups: home exercise group (n=33), ligament correction KT group (n=33), and lymphatic correction KT group (n=33). The KT groups were also given a home exercise program. The pain intensity and patient global assessments were conducted using a 10-cm Visual Analog Scale. The disability level was assessed using the Oswestry Disability Index. Assessments were performed at baseline (T1), four weeks (T2), and eight weeks (T3).

Results: In the home exercise group, there was no significant change in pain levels at rest over time. Significant improvements were found in other parameters in all groups. The pain level at rest was significantly reduced at the T1-T2 interval in the lymphatic correction KT group compared to the home exercise group. At the T1-T3 interval, both KT groups showed a statistically significant reduction in pain at rest compared to the home exercise group. Both KT groups showed a statistically significant improvement in disability compared to the home exercise group.

Conclusion: In the treatment of SIJD, both KT techniques added to the home exercise program were more effective on pain, patient global assessment, and disability than the home exercise program alone.