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Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is known as the second most destructive central nervous system (CNS) disorder, which leads to movement slowness, tremors, decreased balance, instability, and CNS disorders in affected patients. This study aimed to investigate the effect of 12 weeks of Cawthorne-Cooksey exercises on the balance and the quality of life in patients with PD. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study, and the research population consisted of PD patients in Zahedan City who were present at the Zahedan Elderly Center during May, June, and July 2022. Twenty-four individuals who were 53 to 69 years old volunteered to participate in this study and were assigned to the experimental (N = 12) and control (N = 12) groups. In addition to the usual treatment, the experimental group performed Cawthorne-Cooksey exercises (CCE) exercises for 12 weeks, while the control group only received the usual treatment during this period. The CCE exercises were performed for 60-minute sessions, three days a week, for twelve weeks. The Berg Balance Scale (BBS) was used to evaluate balance, and the Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (PDQL 37) was used to assess the QOL of PD. The data were analyzed using Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney U tests. Results: The Mann-Whitney U test results revealed that the experimental group exhibited significantly higher scores in all factors of QOL and balance during the post-test when compared to the control group ( P < 0.05). Moreover, the outcomes of the Wilcoxon test demonstrated significant improvements in all components of QOL and balance for the experimental group from pre-test to post-test ( P < 0.05), whereas the control group experienced a notable decline in both balance and QOL during the same period ( P < 0.05). Conclusion: The study demonstrates that CCE exercises positively influence the balance and quality of life of Parkinson's disease patients, suggesting their potential as complementary therapy in the treatment of PD.
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BACKGROUND: Gender differences in muscle activity during landing have been proposed as a possible contributing factor to the greater incidence of anterior cruciate ligament injuries in women. Conflicting results among a few studies in this regard makes it impossible to reach correct conclusions. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was systematic review and the meta-analysis of previous studies which have compared the electromyographic activity of lower limb muscles in gluteus muscles (maximus and medius), quadriceps (rectus femoris, vastus medialis and lateralis), hamstrings (biceps femoris and semimembranosus), and gastrocnemius in men and women in jump-landing task. METHODS: A systematic search of the PubMed, SCOPUS, Science Direct databases was performed for eligible articles in October 2020. Cross-sectional studies that compared the muscle activity of male and female athletes without a history of previous injury in the jump-landing task were included. Unisex and non-athlete's studies were extracted from the included studies. The data were synthesized using a fixed and random effects model. RESULTS: Eight studies involving 145 participants were included. All participants were people who participated in regular exercises. The meta-analysis of timing and muscle activity was performed in the feedforward (pre contact) and feedback (post contact) stages. There were no significant differences in the muscle activity of biceps femoris (MD = -12.01; 95% CI - 51.49 to 27.47; p = 0.55; I2 = 87%), vastus medialis (MD = -53.46; 95% CI - 129.73 to 22.81; p = 0.17; I2 = 91%), semimembranosus (MD = 1.81; 95% CI - 6.44 to 10.07; p = 0.67; I2 = 0%), gluteus medius (MD = -3.14; 95% CI - 14.24 to 7.96; p = 0.58; I2 = 48%), and rectus femoris (MD = -5.83; 95% CI - 14.57 to 2.92; p = 0.19; I2 = 87%) in the pre contact phase between two sexes. There was a significant difference between men and women in the activity of vastus lateralis muscle in the post contact phase (MD = -34.90; 95% CI - 48.23 to - 21.57). No significant difference was observed between the men and women in the timing of semimembranosus (MD = 23.53; 95% CI - 14.49 to 61.54; p = 0.23; I2 = 56%) and biceps femoris muscle activity (MD = -46.84; 95% CI - 97.50 to 3.83; p = 0.07; I2 = 82%). CONCLUSION: The results showed that in all lower limb muscles except vastus lateralis there were no significant differences between muscle activity and muscle contraction timing in both sexes before and after foot contact. Therefore, it can be concluded that the reason for the greater susceptibility of ACL injuries in women than men is maybe related to other factors such as biomechanical and hormonal. Additional good quality research in this regard is required to strengthen these conclusions.
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OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of physical therapy on balance, exaggerated muscle tonicity and quality of life on patients with hemiparesis. METHODS: This quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2011 among male hemiparetic patients secondary to stroke, at a physiotherapy centre in Neyshabur, Iran. Twenty-four patients were randomly assigned to two equal groups representing the cases and the controls.The cases were assigned to do the practical protocol for 4 weeks.To collect the data, Berg Balance Scaling, Modified Ashworth Scale, Barthel Activities of Daily Living Index and demographic questionnaires were used. Paired and un-paired t-tests were used to analyse data. All analyses were done on SPSS 16. RESULTS: The two groups were similar before intervention. Post-test analysis showed that the average balance and quality of life significantly improved (p<0.001) among the cases, and the quadriceps muscle tonicity decreased (p<0.001). Among the controls, there was no significant change between pre-test and post-test readings. CONCLUSIONS: Physical therapy can enhance balance and quality of life of hemiparetic patients and reduces their exaggerated muscle tonicity.
