OBJECTIVE To evaluate the short-term effects of high-intensity, task-specific vs regular rehabilitation programme on neuromuscular activity and functional changes in elderly inpatients. DESIGN Single-blind, randomized controlled trial. PATIENTS Sixty-two patients, aged 74.1 (standard deviation (SD) 6.9) years, 12.8 (SD 3.6) days after operation of one lower limb. METHODS Allocation to eit...

OBJECTIVE To examine the test-retest reliability and construct validity of cervical active range of motion and isometric neck muscle strength as measured by the Multi Cervical Rehabilitation Unit (Hanoun Medical Inc., Ontario). DESIGN A cross-sectional study. SETTING Institutional practice. SUBJECTS Twenty-one patients with neck pain and 25 healthy volunteers. METHODS After a trial-run ...

Peripheral muscle weakness is common in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) but it is still under debate whether weakness is due to atrophy or contractile dysfunction. In vitro and in vivo contractile properties of the vastus lateralis muscle were studied in 16 patients with stable COPD (forced expiratory volume in one second 39 +/- 16% of predicted, age 67 +/- 4 yrs (mean +/- sD)) and...

High-level activities are typically not performed by patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which results in reduced functional performance; however, the physiological parameters that contribute to this reduced performance are unknown. The aim of this study was to determine the relationships between high-level functional performance, leg muscle strength/power, aerobic power...

We investigated the influence of nociceptive stimulation on the accuracy of task execution and motor unit spike trains during low-force isometric contractions. Muscle pain was induced by infusion of hypertonic saline into the abductor digiti minimi muscle of 11 healthy men. Intramuscular EMG signals were recorded from the same muscle during four isometric contractions of 60-s duration at 10% of...

In sports, like team handball, fatigue has been associated with an increased risk of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. While effects of fatigue on muscle function are commonly assessed during maximal isometric voluntary contraction (MVC), such measurements may not relate to the muscle function during match play. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of muscle fatigue in...

Very little attention has been given to the combined effects of aging and disuse as separate factors causing deterioration in muscle mechanical function. Thus the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 2 wk of immobilization followed by 4 wk of retraining on knee extensor muscle mechanical function (e.g., maximal strength and rapid force capacity) and muscle fiber morphology in...

ABSTRACT Introduction The squat is an exercise that widely used for the development of strength in sports. However, considering not all sports gestures are vertical, it important to investigate effectiveness propulsive force stimuli applied different planes. Objective main purpose this study was determine influence maximum isometric (MIF) exerted on starting blocks over performance 5, 10 and 20...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the test-retest reliability of isometric and isokinetic muscle strength measurements in the upper extremity after stroke. DESIGN A test-retest design. SUBJECTS Forty-five persons with mild to moderate paresis in the upper extremity > 6 months post-stroke. METHODS Isometric arm strength (shoulder abduction, elbow flexion), isokinetic arm strength (elbow extension/flex...