Kinesio Taping Increases Peak Torque of Quadriceps Muscle After Arthroscopic Meniscectomy, Double-Blinded RCT.

Purpose: This study was conducted to release the debate and examine the short-term impact of KT on the quadriceps muscle following arthroscopic surgery for partial meniscectomy. Patients and Methods: As part of a double-blind, randomized controlled trial, 40 people who had an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy (APM) were randomly put into two groups, A and B. Group A received Kinesio tape (KT) for the superficial heads of the quadriceps muscle, while group B received placebo KTk. After 10 minutes of KT application, the peak torque of both groups was measured using a Biodex isokinetic dynamometer. Results: Peak torque showed a significant increase in group A in comparison with group B during angular velocity 60◦/Sec. (F (1, 130) = 58.9, p <0.001, ƞ2 =0.31) and during angular velocity 180◦/Sec. (F (1, 38) = 25.0, p <0.001, ƞ2 =0.40). Conclusion: After APM, individuals experienced an immediate and significant improvement in the quadriceps' peak torque following KT application to the Rectus femoris, Vastus medialis, and Vastus lateralis muscles from origin to insertion.

Neck Health Metrics and Quality of Life: A Comparative Study in Bike Drivers with and without Neck Pain.

Purpose: Neck pain is a prevalent musculoskeletal issue among bike drivers, often resulting from extended static postures, repetitive head movements, and exposure to vibrations. This study aims to assess the connection between cervical ROM, neck proprioception, CVA, and QOL in bike drivers with neck pain compared to those without neck pain so that the targeted interventions can be developed to enhance their well-being. Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 100 bike drivers aged 20-50 years was conducted, split into two groups: those with neck pain (n=50) and those without neck pain (n=50). Cervical ROM was measured using a smartphone, neck proprioception was assessed through a head repositioning test, and CVA was determined using lateral-view photographs with a plumb line. The Short Form-36 (SF-36) questionnaire was employed to evaluate QOL. Data analysis was conducted using independent t-tests and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Results: Bike drivers with neck pain exhibited significantly reduced cervical ROM (p-value=<0.001), impaired neck proprioception (p-value=<0.001), and decreased CVA (p-value=<0.001) compared to their counterparts without neck pain. A strong negative correlation was found between neck pain and QOL, with lower scores in all eight domains of the SF-36. Cervical ROM, neck proprioception, and CVA showed moderate correlations with various QOL domains (p-value=<0.05). Conclusion: Neck pain in bike drivers is linked to decrease cervical ROM, compromised neck proprioception, and reduced CVA. These factors correlate with a lower quality of life, both physical and mental domains. Interventions addressing these aspects may enhance the quality of life for bike drivers experiencing neck pain.

Utility of Opportunistic Infections, Joints' Involvement and Accuracy of Various Screening Tests to Diagnose Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients.

Background and Objectives: Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is an auto-immune disease in which the body mistakenly considers some parts of its own system as pathogens and attacks them. Prevalence is approximately 0.75% in India. About 40% of the diseased become work disabled within 5 years from the onset of symptoms. The objective of this paper is to assess the sign/symptoms, joints' involvement, difficulties in daily activities and screening accuracy of serology tests of clinically suspected RA patients. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional cohort study design was conducted on two hundred ninety clinically suspected subjects who were referred by different OPDs of hospitals for screening. The profiles of study subjects were carried through a semi-structured, pre-tested schedule method. About 2 mL of blood samples were collected in a plain vial from each patient and tested for diagnostic tests RF, CRP and AntiCCP by using RF-Latex, CRP Latex and ELISA method, respectively, by the laboratory persons. Results: Joint pain shows to be a leading problem in RA as compared to other signs and symptoms. The majority of the study subjects suffer from knee problems (62%). Approximately equal numbers of RA-positive cases were screened by RF and AntiCCP tests. The CRP test screened about one-third of cases. CRP+ AntiCCP, RF+ AntiCCP and RF + CRP all have good sensitivity, and RF+ AntiCCP + CRP has a very high sensitivity for diagnosing RA. Conclusions: This study found that a substantiation of a major proportion of clinically suspected RA patients were suffering from knee pain. Predication of AntiCCP increased the possibility for the diagnosis of RA. However, RF was also moderately related to the diagnosis of RA, and the combination of both tests was more valuable.