The turtle body plan differs markedly from that of other vertebrates and serves as a model system for studying structural and developmental evolution. Incorporation of the ribs into the turtle shell negates the costal movements that effect lung ventilation in other air-breathing amniotes. Instead, turtles have a unique abdominal-muscle-based ventilatory apparatus whose evolutionary origins have...

The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of applying transcutaneous electrical stimulation to paralyzed abdominal muscles during pulmonary function testing (PFT) of individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Ten male subjects with anatomical level of SCI between C5-T7 were studied. Subjects performed PFTs with and without electrical stimulation delivered to the abdominal muscles. Sub...

The feasibility of using electrical stimulation of abdominal muscles to produce or augment cough in spinal cord injury has been demonstrated. Past studies have focused exclusively on the measurement of airflow at the mouth or expiratory pressures during electrically stimulated cough. The present study examined the actual movements of the trunk during electrical stimulation of the abdominal musc...

We simultaneously assessed the blood flow index (BFI) in three respiratory muscles during hyperpnea and high-intensity constant-load cycling sustained at comparable levels of work breathing neural drive patients with COPD. demonstrated that exercise impairs muscle perfusion, as intercostal, scalene, abdominal BFI increased but not cycling. Insufficient adjustment perfusion was associated greate...

Fluid flow is important in many biomechanical models, but there is a lack of experimental data that quantifies soft tissue permeability. We measured the tissue permeability in fibrous soft tissue, using a novel technique to obtain specimens by allowing soft tissue to grow into coralline hydroxyapatite scaffoldings implanted between the abdominal muscle layers of rats.

Pilate’s exercises were originally designed for and used by performance artists, but have enjoyed wider popularity in recent years [1]. Joseph H. Pilates developed a comprehensive program known as the Pilates method in the 1920’s. Over the last decade, the popularity of this set of exercises has grown and Pilates is now used as a form of fitness and holistic health [2]. The Pilates method can o...

The tadpoles of many anuran amphibians inhabit lotic habitats and evolved oral devices to adhere to the substratum. Although published anatomical descriptions of rheophilous tadpoles exist, little is known about the modifications in gastromyzophorous tadpoles that possess abdominal suckers and live in torrential sections of streams. We describe the gastromyzophorous tadpoles of Huia cavitympanu...

[Purpose] To study the effect that limbering up of the muscles attached to the pelvis has on muscle strength of the trunk and upper and lower extremities, which are not being exercised, and to investigate the possibilities for clinical application. [Subjects and Methods] A total of 152 healthy adult men. Sthenometry was conducted using a handheld dynamometer to assess the effect of limbering up...