Effect of Pilates combined with pelvic floor muscle training on continence of post-prostatectomy incontinence in patients with different body mass index.

BACKGROUND: Urinary incontinence symptoms severely affect older people with different body mass index (BMI).To compare the efficacy of the pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) in patients with post-prostatectomy incontinence with different BMI. METHODS: Thirty-seven patients with post-prostatectomy incontinence were included. They were divided into group A (BMI ≤ 25,12), group B (26 ≤ BMI ≤ 30,14), and group C (BMI ≥ 31,11) based on difference BMI. Three groups of patients underwent the same Pilates combined with kegel training. Participants were assessed with 1-hour pad test, the number of incontinence episodes, International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire and Oxford Grading Scale. RESULTS: In the 1-hour pad test, the differences before and after training were statistically significant in all three groups of participants. Group A decreased from 81.83 ± 8.79 to 31.08 ± 5.64 g (P < 0.01). Group B decreased from 80.57 ± 8.87 to 35.85 ± 5.66 g (P < 0.01). Group C decreased from 83.55 ± 10.24 to 40.18 ± 7.01 g (P < 0.01). The number of incontinent episodes in group A decreased from 9.33 ± 1.07 to 3.25 ± 0.62 (P < 0.01). Group B decreased from 8.86 ± 1.09 to 3.79 ± 0.80 (P < 0.01). Group C decreased from 9.27 ± 1.10 to 4.09 ± 0.70 (P < 0.01). The correlation between the three groups of participants and the 1-hour pad test, with an R2 of 0.51. The correlation between the three groups of participants and the number of urinary incontinence episodes with a R2 of 0.43. CONCLUSIONS: Pelvic floor muscle training can affect the recovery of urinary continence in patients with different BMI. Maintaining a lower BMI can be beneficial for improving urinary control. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Date of trial registration: November 27, 2023.

Effect of the COVID-19 lockdown period on the physical condition, living habits, and physical activity of citizens in Beijing, China.

[Purpose] We aimed to explore the effects of the COVID-19-induced lockdown in Beijing. [Participants and Methods] We distributed a web-based questionnaire survey among 1,029 Beijing citizens to inquire about their physical condition, living habits, and physical activity before and during home isolation. [Results] In the context of forced home isolation due to COVID-19, both males and females reported reductions in daily steps and weekly exercise time and significant increases in daily physical activity time and daily sitting time. The proportions of smokers, patients with metabolic syndrome, and patients with internal diseases were higher in males than in females; females had lower daily step counts and spent more time sitting. [Conclusion] The COVID-19 lockdown affected the physical condition, living habits, and physical activity of both males and females; females were more affected than males. People should be cognizant of the various effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on the body. We recommend a reasonable diet and appropriate home exercise. There is a need to develop training methods and evaluation tools for home exercises in COVID-19 lockdowns.

Effects of inner muscle resistance exercise on stress urinary incontinence: a randomized clinical controlled trial.

[Purpose] This study investigated the effects of co-contraction resistance exercises of the transverse abdominal and pelvic floor muscles in middle-aged females with stress urinary incontinence. [Participants and Methods] We included 32 females with stress urinary incontinence and divided them into two groups: the inner muscle training group and the pelvic floor muscle group. The thickness of the transverse abdominal muscle was measured during four tasks: (1) rest, (2) maximum contraction of the transverse abdominal muscle, (3) maximum contraction of the pelvic floor muscle, and (4) maximum co-contraction of the transverse abdominal and pelvic floor muscles. In the latter three tasks, measurements were obtained while the participants performed resistance movements using a Thera-band®. A home program was conducted in both groups, and the intervention lasted for 8 weeks. [Results] The cure rates for SUI were 87.5% and 68.8% in the inner muscle training and pelvic floor muscle groups, respectively. After the intervention, the thickness of the transverse abdominal muscle significantly increased in the inner muscle training groups performing maximum co-contraction of the transverse abdominal and pelvic floor muscles and maximum contraction of the transverse abdominal muscle. [Conclusion] Inner muscle training exercises are more effective than pelvic floor muscle exercises in improving inner muscle function and urinary incontinence in middle-aged females.

Summary of respiratory rehabilitation and physical therapy guidelines for patients with COVID-19 based on recommendations of World Confederation for Physical Therapy and National Association of Physical Therapy.

[Purpose] To summarize the existing official guidelines issued by the World Confederation for Physical Therapy and Associations of Physical Therapy in various countries and to clarify the recommended methods of respiratory rehabilitation and physiotherapy for patients in different stages of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). [Methods] An introductory literature search was conducted using the keywords "COVID-19", "respiratory rehabilitation", "physical therapy", and others in the database of the Association of Physical Therapy. [Results] Using 12 coronavirus disease-2019 rehabilitation-related articles, we summarized data on physical therapy (PT) evaluation; treatment; indications; contraindications; and termination indicators for patients in acute, stable, and post-discharge stages. [Conclusion] PT for COVID-19 patients with coronavirus disease 2019 should be formulated according to the stage of the disease and condition of the patients.

Immediate effects of different frequencies of auditory stimulation on lower limb motor function of healthy people.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to explore the immediate effects of different frequencies of auditory stimulation on the lower limb motor function of healthy people. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 7 healthy people (5 males and 2 females). The subjects' lower limb function was measured without auditory stimulation (control), and with auditory stimulation of 500, 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 Hz. The measured parameters were maximum knee extension torque, average knee extension torque, the Timed Up and Go test (TUG) time, Functional Reach (FR), and the 10-meter walking time. [Results] The TUG times of 500, 1,500, and 2,000 Hz auditory stimulation showed significant decreases compared to the control. The 10-m walking times of 1,000 and 2,000 Hz auditory stimulation showed significant decreases compared to the control. [Conclusion] The results show that auditory stimulation improved the TUG and 10-meter walking times of healthy people and that different frequencies of auditory stimulation had different effects on lower limb motor function.

The immediate intervention effects of robotic training in patients after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to examine the immediate effects of robot-assisted therapy on functional activity level after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. [Subjects and Methods] Participants included 10 patients (8 males and 2 females) following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. The subjects participated in robot-assisted therapy and treadmill exercise on different days. The Timed Up-and-Go test, Functional Reach Test, surface electromyography of the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis, and maximal extensor strength of isokinetic movement of the knee joint were evaluated in both groups before and after the experiment. [Results] The results for the Timed Up-and-Go Test and the 10-Meter Walk Test improved in the robot-assisted rehabilitation group. Surface electromyography of the vastus medialis muscle showed significant increases in maximum and average discharge after the intervention. [Conclusion] The results suggest that walking ability and muscle strength can be improved by robotic training.

Long-term interventions effects of robotic training on patients after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to examine the long-term interventions effects of robot-assisted therapy rehabilitation on functional activity levels after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 8 patients (6 males and 2 females) who received anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. The subjects participated in robot-assisted therapy lasting for one month. The Timed Up-and-Go test, 10-Meter Walk test, Functional Reach Test, surface electromyography of the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis, and extensor strength of isokinetic movement of the knee joint were evaluated before and after the intervention. [Results] The average value of the of vastus medialis EMG, Functional Reach Test, and the maximum and average extensor strength of the knee joint isokinetic movement increased significantly, and the time of the 10-Meter Walk test decreased significantly. [Conclusion] These results suggest that walking ability and muscle strength can be improved by robotic walking training as a long-term intervention.

Immediate effects of different treatments for the wrist joints of subdominant hands, using electromechanical reaction time.

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to examine the immediate effects of muscle strength training and neuromuscular joint facilitation distal resistance training on wrist joints by using electromechanical reaction time. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 12 healthy young people (24.2 ± 3.1 years, 169.7 ± 6.5 cm, 65.3 ± 12.6 kg). Two kinds of isotonic contraction techniques were applied on the wrist joint: the wrist joint extension muscle strength training and the wrist joint extension pattern of neuromuscular joint facilitation. The electromechanical reaction time, premotor time, and motor time of the left upper limb were measured before and after each intervention session of muscle strength training and neuromuscular joint facilitation. [Results] The neuromuscular joint facilitation group showed significant shortening of the electromechanical reaction time and motor time after the intervention. [Conclusion] These results suggest that the electromechanical reaction time and motor time of the wrist joint can be improved by neuromuscular joint facilitation together with proximal resistance training, which can be used as a new form of exercise for improving the functions of subdominant hand wrist joints.

Evaluation of effects of different treatments for the wrist joints of subdominant hands using joint proprioception and writing time.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to examine immediate effects of strength training and NJF distal resistance training in wrist joints by using writing time and evaluation of proprioception using the JPE test. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 12 young healthy people (24.2 ± 3.1 y, 169.7 ± 6.5 cm, 65.3 ± 12.6 kg). Two isotonic contraction techniques were applied on the wrist joint: wrist joint extension muscle strength training (MST) and the wrist joint extension pattern of NJF. The uppercase English alphabet writing time and joint position errors of the left upper limb were measured before and after one intervention session of MST and NJF. [Results] The decrease in errors in wrist extension angle repetition and the writing time represented the improvement resulting from NJF. [Conclusion] This result suggests that the subdominant hands wrist joint proprioception and writing function can be improved by NJF together with proximal resistance training.

Detection of HLA-B*58:01 with TaqMan assay and its association with allopurinol-induced sCADR.

BACKGROUND: The HLA-B*58:01 allele is associated with allopurinol-induced severe cutaneous adverse drug reactions (sCADR) in certain geographic regions, but the diversity of the correlation is large. In addition, the currently available HLA-B*58:01 testing methods are too laborious for use in routine clinical detection. The objective of this study was to develop a new, convenient method for the detection of HLA-B*58:01 and to investigate the association of HLA-B*58:01 with allopurinol-induced sCADR in a Han Chinese population. METHODS: A new method combining sequence-specific primers (SSP) and TaqMan probe amplification was developed in this study and was used to detect the HLA-B*58:01 in 48 allopurinol-induced sCADR, 133 allopurinol-tolerant, and 280 healthy individuals. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity were assessed by a commercial PCR-SSP HLA-B typing kit. The low limit of detection was detected by serial dilution of an HLA-B*58:01-positive DNA template. RESULTS: The new method successfully identified HLA-B*58:01 in thousands of HLA-B alleles, and the results for 344 DNA samples were perfectly concordant with the results of the commercial PCR-SSP HLA-B kit. The analytical sensitivity is 100% and the specificity is over 99%. The low limit of detection of this assay is 100 pg DNA, which was 10 times more sensitive than the commercial PCR-SSP kit. HLA-B*58:01 was present in 93.8% of the patients with sCADR, 7.5% of the allopurinol-tolerant patients, and 12.1% of the healthy controls. The frequency of HLA-B*58:01 was significantly higher in the sCADR group than in the control group (p<0.0001). However, there was no significant difference between the allopurinol-tolerant and control groups (p=0.1547). CONCLUSIONS: HLA-B*58:01 has a strong association with allopurinol-induced sCADR in Han Chinese. The newly developed method is reliable for HLA-B*58:01 detection prior to allopurinol therapy.

Effects of robot training on bowel function in patients with spinal cord injury.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of body weight-supported treadmill training (BWSTT) and robot-assisted rehabilitation (RAT) on bowel function in patients with spinal cord injury with respect to defecation time and defecation drug dose (enema). [Subjects] Twenty-four patients with spinal cord injury participated in the study. All subjects had an incomplete injury ranging from level T8 to L2. [Methods] The subjects were randomly divided into BWSTT and RAT groups. Walking training was provided to both groups for 20 minutes, four times a week, for one month. The defecation time and enema dose were measured before and after the experiment. [Results] The RAT group showed significant shortening of defecation time and decrease of enema dose. [Conclusion] The results demonstrated that significantly better improvement in bowel function can be achieved with RAT.

The reliability of evaluation of hip muscle strength in rehabilitation robot walking training.

[Purpose] The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the intraclass correlation coefficient in obtaining the torque of the hip muscle strength during a robot-assisted rehabilitation treatment. [Subjects] Twenty-four patients (15 males, 9 females) with spinal cord injury participated in the study. [Methods] The subjects were asked to walk during robot-assisted rehabilitation, and the torque of the muscle strength which was measured at hip joint flexion angles of -15, -10, -5, 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 degrees. [Results] The intraclass correlation coefficient of the torque of the hip muscle strength measured by the rehabilitation training robot was excellent. [Conclusion] Our results show that measurement of torque can be used as an objective assessment of treatment with RAT.

Effects of different frequencies of rhythmic auditory cueing on the stride length, cadence, and gait speed in healthy young females.

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to explore the effects of different frequencies of rhythmic auditory cueing (RAC) on stride length, cadence, and gait speed in healthy young females. The findings of this study might be used as clinical guidance of physical therapy for choosing the suitable frequency of RAC. [Subjects] Thirteen healthy young females were recruited in this study. [Methods] Ten meters walking tests were measured in all subjects under 4 conditions with each repeated 3 times and a 3-min seated rest period between repetitions. Subjects first walked as usual and then were asked to listen carefully to the rhythm of a metronome and walk with 3 kinds of RAC (90%, 100%, and 110% of the mean cadence). The three frequencies (90%, 100%, and 110%) of RAC were randomly assigned. Gait speed, stride length, and cadence were calculated, and a statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS (version 17.0) computer package. [Results] The gait speed and cadence of 90% RAC walking showed significant decreases compared with normal walking and 100% and 110% RAC walking. The stride length, cadence, and gait speed of 110% RAC walking showed significant increases compared with normal walking and 90% and 100% RAC walking. [Conclusion] Our results showed that 110% RAC was the best of the 3 cueing frequencies for improvement of stride length, cadence, and gait speed in healthy young females.

Evaluation of the effects of different treatments for the elbow joint using joint proprioception and surface electromyography.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to examine the immediate effects of strength training and neuromuscular joint facilitation (NJF) distal resistance training on muscle strength and proprioception. [Subjects] The subjects were 15 young healthy people (29.3±4.1 y, 166.8±7.1 cm, 62.4 ± 11.6 ky). [Methods] Two isometric contraction techniques were applied on the elbow joint: elbow joint flexion muscle strength training (MST) and the elbow joint flexion pattern of NJF. Muscle strength (measured by surface electromyography [sEMG]) and joint position errors of the left upper limb were measured before and after one intervention session of MST and NJF. [Results] The decrease in error in elbow flexion angle repetition represented the improvement resulting from NJF. sEMG of the biceps brachii showed significant increases in the maximum discharge and average discharge after the intervention. [Conclusion] This result suggests that elbow joint proprioception and muscle strength can be improved by NJF together with proximal resistance training.

Research on Design Theory and Compliant Control for Underactuated Lower-extremity Rehabilitation Robotic Systems code: (51175368); 2012.01-2015.12.

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to investigate the immediate effect of Lokomat versus Ergo_bike training using the Probe Reaction Time (P-RT) and 10-m maximum walking speed as the outcome measures, on incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) patients. [Subjects] Thirty male T8-L3 level spinal cord injury patients were the subjects. [Methods] The subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups: a Lokomat group and an Ergo_bike group. Each group consisted of 15 subjects. The P-RT and 10 m maximum walking speed were measured before and after the intervention for each group. [Results] The P-RT and the time taken to cover 10 m at maximum walking speed decreased significantly in the Lokomat group. [Conclusion] The Lokomat training not only decreased P-RT, but also improved the walking ability of subjects with iSCI.

Effects of manual therapy on bowel function of patients with spinal cord injury.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to observe the effects of manual therapy on bowel function of patients with spinal cord injury. [Subjects] The participants were 20 patients with spinal cord injury. [Methods] Manual therapy was applied to the intestine and along the colon ascendens, transverse colon, colon descendens and colon sigmoidem on the surface of abdomen. The results before and after 60 sessions (5 times/week, continued for 12 weeks) of manual therapy were compared. [Results] It was found that there were significant effects both on shortening of bowel time and decreasing dosage of glycerine enema every time patients needed to excrete. [Conclusion] Manual therapy had significant effects on bowel function of patients with spinal cord injury.

Monitoring Endangered and Rare Wildlife in the Field: A Foundation Deep Learning Model Integrating Human Knowledge for Incremental Recognition with Few Data and Low Cost.

Intelligent monitoring of endangered and rare wildlife is important for biodiversity conservation. In practical monitoring, few animal data are available to train recognition algorithms. The system must, therefore, achieve high accuracy with limited resources. Simultaneously, zoologists expect the system to be able to discover unknown species to make significant discoveries. To date, none of the current algorithms have these abilities. Therefore, this paper proposed a KI-CLIP method. Firstly, by first introducing CLIP, a foundation deep learning model that has not yet been applied in animal fields, the powerful recognition capability with few training resources is exploited with an additional shallow network. Secondly, inspired by the single-image recognition abilities of zoologists, we incorporate easily accessible expert description texts to improve performance with few samples. Finally, a simple incremental learning module is designed to detect unknown species. We conducted extensive comparative experiments, ablation experiments, and case studies on 12 datasets containing real data. The results validate the effectiveness of KI-CLIP, which can be trained on multiple real scenarios in seconds, achieving in our study over 90% recognition accuracy with only 8 training samples, and over 97% with 16 training samples. In conclusion, KI-CLIP is suitable for practical animal monitoring.

[Construction of a predictive model for in-hospital mortality of sepsis patients in intensive care unit based on machine learning].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the risk factors of in-hospital death in patients with sepsis in the intensive care unit (ICU) based on machine learning, and to construct a predictive model, and to explore the predictive value of the predictive model. METHODS: The clinical data of patients with sepsis who were hospitalized in the ICU of the Affiliated Hospital of Jining Medical University from April 2015 to April 2021 were retrospectively analyzed,including demographic information, vital signs, complications, laboratory examination indicators, diagnosis, treatment, etc. Patients were divided into death group and survival group according to whether in-hospital death occurred. The cases in the dataset (70%) were randomly selected as the training set for building the model, and the remaining 30% of the cases were used as the validation set. Based on seven machine learning models including logistic regression (LR), K-nearest neighbor (KNN), support vector machine (SVM), decision tree (DT), random forest (RF), extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) and artificial neural network (ANN), a prediction model for in-hospital mortality of sepsis patients was constructed. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve), calibration curve and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to evaluate the predictive performance of the seven models from the aspects of identification, calibration and clinical application, respectively. In addition, the predictive model based on machine learning was compared with the sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) and acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) models. RESULTS: A total of 741 patients with sepsis were included, of which 390 were discharged after improvement, 351 died in hospital, and the in-hospital mortality was 47.4%. There were significant differences in gender, age, APACHE II score, SOFA score, Glasgow coma score (GCS), heart rate, oxygen index (PaO2/FiO2), mechanical ventilation ratio, mechanical ventilation time, proportion of norepinephrine (NE) used, maximum NE, lactic acid (Lac), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), albumin (ALB), serum creatinine (SCr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), blood uric acid (BUA), pH value, base excess (BE), and K+ between the death group and the survival group. ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of RF, XGBoost, LR, ANN, DT, SVM, KNN models, SOFA score, and APACHE II score for predicting in-hospital mortality of sepsis patients were 0.871, 0.846, 0.751, 0.747, 0.677, 0.657, 0.555, 0.749 and 0.760, respectively. Among all the models, the RF model had the highest precision (0.750), accuracy (0.785), recall (0.773), and F1 score (0.761), and best discrimination. The calibration curve showed that the RF model performed best among the seven machine learning models. DCA curve showed that the RF model exhibited greater net benefit as well as threshold probability compared to other models, indicating that the RF model was the best model with good clinical utility. CONCLUSIONS: The machine learning model can be used as a reliable tool for predicting in-hospital mortality in sepsis patients. RF models has the best predictive performance, which is helpful for clinicians to identify high-risk patients and implement early intervention to reduce mortality.

Association between neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio and 28-day mortality in Chinese patients with sepsis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio (NPAR) and 28-day mortality in severely ill Chinese patients with sepsis. METHODS: In this retrospective, single-centre study, sepsis patients admitted to the ICU of the Affiliated Hospital of Jining Medical University between May 2015 and December 2021 were retrospectively analysed. The relationship between NPAR and 28-day mortality was examined using Cox proportional-hazards model. RESULTS: In total, 741 patients with sepsis were included. Multivariate analysis, adjusted for age, sex, body mass index (BMI), smoking and alcohol drinking history, showed an association between elevated NPAR and a high risk of 28-day mortality. After removal of additional confounders, moderate and high NPAR values remained significantly associated with 28-day mortality in comparison with low NPAR values (tertile 2 vs 1: HR, 95% CI: 1.42, 1.06-1.90; tertile 3 vs 1: HR, 95% CI: 1.35, 1.00-1.82). Survival curves stratified by NPAR groups showed that high NPAR levels had lower survival probabilities than lower NPAR levels. Subgroup analysis did not show any significant interactions between NPAR and 28-day mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated NPAR values were linked to increased 28-day mortality in severely ill Chinese patients with sepsis. The findings require verification by large, prospective, multi-centre studies.

Body mass index combined with (waist + hip)/height accurately screened for normal-weight obesity in Chinese young adults.

OBJECTIVES: Only a few studies have explored the prevalence of normal-weight obesity in young adults or the development of a simple evaluation index for body fat percentage. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the prevalence of normal-weight obesity in young Chinese adults and use anthropometric measurements to develop an evaluation index. METHODS: In total, 1322 college students participated in the study and were divided into the normal-weight lean, normal-weight obese, and overweight and obese groups based on their body mass index and body fat percentage. The differences in body composition, circumference, and circumference ratio among these three groups were examined. RESULTS: When exploring the correlation between the circumference ratio and body fat percentage, the circumference ratio was suitable for early screening of abnormal body fat percentage, and the cutoff value was calculated. Body composition and circumference were significantly different among the three groups: (waist + hip)-to-height, hip-to-height, and waist-to-height ratios were strongly correlated with body fat percentage. CONCLUSIONS: (Waist + hip)-to-height ratio can be used as a simple evaluation index for indicating abnormal body fat percentage when higher than 1.032 in male and 1.047 in female individuals. Downregulating the normal upper limit for body mass index to 24.4 and 23.8 kg/m2 in male and female individuals, respectively, is recommended. Body mass index combined with (waist + hip)-to-height ratio allowed for more accurate screening of normal-weight obesity as an easy and cost-free evaluation measure for abnormal body fat percentage.