Effect of Reduced Feedback Frequencies on Motor Learning in a Postural Control Task in Young Adults.

The effects of the use of reduced feedback frequencies on motor learning remain controversial in the scientific literature. At present, there is still controversy about the guidance hypothesis, with some works supporting it and others contradicting it. To shed light on this topic, an experiment was conducted with four groups, each with different feedback frequencies (0%, 33%, 67%, and 100%), which were evaluated three times (pre-test, post-test, and retention) during a postural control task. In addition, we tested whether there was a transfer in performance to another similar task involving postural control. As a result, only the 67% feedback group showed an improvement in their task performance in the post-test and retention evaluations. Nevertheless, neither group showed differences in motor transfer performance compared to another postural control task. In conclusion, the findings of this paper corroborate the hypothesis of guidance and suggest that the use of a reduced frequency of 67% is a better option for improving motor learning than options that offer feedback at a lower frequency, at all trials or not at all.

Encouraging People with Spinal Cord Injury to Take Part in Physical Activity in the COVID-19 Epidemic through the mHealth ParaSportAPP.

BACKGROUND: Although mHealth tools have great potential for health interventions, few experimental studies report on their use by people with spinal cord injuries in physical activity. OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this study was to analyze the effect of the ParaSportAPP on different physical and psychological variables in people with paraplegia. METHODS: Fourteen of these subjects made up the final sample. All the participants performed two pre-tests (control period) and a post-test with 8 months between the evaluations (COVID-19 broke out between pre-test 2 and the post-test). The ParaSportAPP was installed on their smartphones when they performed pre-test 2. The same tests were performed in the same order in all the evaluations: (i) the questionnaires PASIPD, HADS, RS-25; SCIM III and AQoL-8D, (ii) respiratory muscle strength, (iii) spirometry and (iv) cardiopulmonary exercise test. RESULTS: The results showed no differences in any of the variables studied between the measurement times. CONCLUSIONS: Although none of the variables experienced improvements, the ParaSportAPP mobile application was able to lessen the impact of the pandemic on the variables studied.

Diseño y usabilidad de ParaSportAPP: una mHealth destinada a promocionar la actividad física en personas con lesión medular / Design e usabilidade do ParaSportAPP: uma mHealth para promover a actividade física em pessoas comlesões da medula espinal / Design and usability of ParaSportAPP: an mHealth aimed at promoting physical activity in people with spinalcord injury

Objetivo: Diseñar y evaluar la usabilidad de una mHealth destinada a aumentar los niveles de actividad física en personas con paraplejia usuarias de sillade ruedas manual. Método: En primer lugar, se diseñó la mHealth ParaSportAPP mediante un comité de expertos en ejercicio físico y lesión medular. Posteriormente, una vezcreada la mHealth, se instaló ParaSportAPP en los teléfonos inteligentes de 15 personas con lesión medular dorsal usuarias de silla de ruedas. 8 mesesdespués de la instalación de la mHealth, se citó de nuevo a los participantes del estudio y cumplimentaron la Escala de Usabilidad del Sistema. Resultados: Se creó una mHealth con 79 ejercicios físicos diferentes y con dos modos distintos de transmitirlos al usuario. Además, la aplicación es capazde registrar los ejercicios físicos realizados al margen de los proporcionados por la misma y ofrece un informe a modo de feedback sobre el ejercicio físicorealizado durante el día. Asimismo, los resultados hallados mostraron una puntuación media de 77.5 (18.85) en la Escala de Usabilidad del Sistema.Conclusiones: Se ha conseguido diseñar y crear una mHealth funcional y con buenos niveles de usabilidad centrada en promocionar la actividad física enpersonas con lesión medular dorsal.(AU)

Aim: To design and evaluate the usability of an mHealth aimed at increasing physical activity levels in people with paraplegia who use manualwheelchairs. Method: Firstly, the ParaSportAPP mHealth was designed by a committee of experts in physical exercise and spinal cord injury. Subsequently, once themHealth was created, ParaSportAPP was installed on the smartphones of 15 wheelchair users with dorsal spinal cord injury. 8 months after theinstallation of the mHealth, the participants were summoned again and completed the System Usability Scale. Results: An mHealth was created with 79 different physical exercises and with two different ways of transmitting them to the user. In addition, theapplication is able to record the physical exercises performed in addition to those provided by the application itself and offers a feedback report on thephysical exercise performed during the day. The results also showed an average score of 77.5 (18.85) on the System Usability Scale. Conclusions: It has been possible to design and create a functional mHealth with good levels of usability focused on promoting physical activity in peoplewith dorsal spinal cord injury.(AU)

Objectivo: Conceber e avaliar a usabilidade de uma mHealth destinada a aumentar os níveis de actividade física em pessoas com paraplegia que utilizamcadeiras de rodas manuais. Método: Primeiro, o ParaSportAPP mHealth foi concebido por um comité de peritos em exercício físico e lesões da medula espinal. Subsequentemente,uma vez criada a mHealth, o ParaSportAPP foi instalado nos smartphones de 15 utilizadores de cadeiras de rodas com lesão da espinal medula dorsal. 8meses após a instalação do mHealth, os participantes do estudo foram novamente convocados e completaram a Escala de Usabilidade do Sistema. Resultados: Foi criada uma mHealth com 79 exercícios físicos diferentes e com duas formas diferentes de os transmitir ao utilizador. Além disso, o pedidoé capaz de registar os exercícios físicos realizados para além dos fornecidos pelo próprio pedido e oferece um relatório como feedback sobre o exercíciofísico realizado durante o dia. Além disso, os resultados encontrados mostraram uma pontuação média de 77.5 (18.85) na Escala de Usabilidade doSistema. Conclusões: Tem sido possível conceber e criar uma mHealth funcional com bons níveis de usabilidade centrada na promoção da actividade física empessoas com lesões da espinal-medula dorsal.(AU)

Increased cortisol levels caused by acute resistance physical exercise impair memory and learning ability.

Acute physical exercise works as an activator of the responses of the human organism to stress. This is based on the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, affecting physical, physiological and psychological levels. This study aimed to analyse the effects of a single bout of high-intensity resistance exercise on cognitive-behavioural responses: visuo-spatial path learning and memory, as well as physiological responses (salivary cortisol levels). Nineteen healthy male military-trained powerlifting subjects were tested in a within-subject design on two experimental days with an interval of 48 h. The stress and cognitive variables were measured by cortisol levels and Ruff-Light trail-learning test (RULIT) test scores, respectively. The results showed the immediate influence of acute exercise on cortisol, with significantly higher cortisol levels found in subjects after completion of the acute resistance exercise. In addition, this study found a significant deterioration of memory and learning ability after a dose of intense resistance exercise. In conclusion, the study highlights the relative effects of resistance exercise on cortisol and cognitive performance depending on the intensity and type of the exercise, the moment of measurement and the cerebral areas implicated.

The Mediating Role of Vision in the Relationship between Proprioception and Postural Control in Older Adults, as Compared to Teenagers and Younger and Middle-Aged Adults.

The aim of this study is to analyze the mediating role of vision in the relationship between conscious lower limb proprioception (dominant knee) and bipedal postural control (with eyes open and closed) in older adults, as compared with teenagers, younger adults and middle-aged adults. METHODS: The sample consisted of 119 healthy, physically active participants. Postural control was assessed using the bipedal Romberg test with participants' eyes open and closed on a force platform. Proprioception was measured through the ability to reposition the knee at 45°, measured with the Goniometer Pro application's goniometer. RESULTS: The results showed an indirect relationship between proprioception and postural control with closed eyes in all age groups; however, vision did not mediate this relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Older adults outperformed only teenagers on the balance test. The group of older adults was the only one that did not display differences with regard to certain variables when the test was done with open or closed eyes. It seems that age does not influence performance on proprioception tests. These findings help us to optimize the design of training programs for older adults and suggest that physical exercise is a protective factor against age-related decline.

Impact of COVID-19 on the self-reported physical activity of people with complete thoracic spinal cord injury full-time manual wheelchair users.

CONTEXT: The emergence of COVID-19 caused a new public health crisis, leading to major changes in daily life routines, often including physical activity (PA) levels. The main goal of this study was to analyze the differences in self-reported physical activity of people with complete spinal cord injuries between the time prior to the COVID-19 lockdown and the lockdown period itself. METHODS: A sample of 20 participants with complete thoracic spinal cord injuries completed the Physical Activity Scale for Individuals with Physical Disabilities before and during the COVID-19 lockdown. RESULTS: The results showed differences between the pre-lockdown and lockdown measurements in total self-reported PA (z=-3.92; P<0.001; d=1.28), recreational PA (z=-3.92; P<0.001; d=1.18) and occupational PA (z=-2.03; P=0.042; d=0.55). Nevertheless, no differences were found in housework PA between the two time periods. Furthermore, the results showed differences in total minutes (z=-3.92; P<0.001; d=1.75), minutes spent on recreational activities (z=-3.82; P<0.001; d=1.56) and minutes spent on occupational activities (z=-2.032; P=0.042; d=0.55) of moderate/vigorous intensity. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with thoracic spinal cord injuries who were full-time manual wheelchair users displayed lower levels of PA during the pandemic than in the pre-pandemic period. The results suggest that the prohibition and restrictions on carrying out recreational and/or occupational activities are the main reasons for this inactivity. Physical activity promotion strategies should be implemented within this population to lessen the effects of this physical inactivity stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Validation of Using Smartphone Built-In Accelerometers to Estimate the Active Energy Expenditures of Full-Time Manual Wheelchair Users with Spinal Cord Injury.

This study aimed to investigate the validity of using built-in smartphone accelerometers to estimate the active energy expenditures of full-time manual wheelchair users with spinal cord injury (SCI). Twenty participants with complete SCI completed 10 5-min daily activities that involved the upper limbs, during which their oxygen consumption and upper limb activity were registered using a portable gas analyzer and a smartphone (placed on the non-dominant arm), respectively. Time series of 1-min averaged oxygen consumption and 55 accelerometer variables (13 variables for each of the four axes and three additional variables for the correlations between axes) were used to estimate three multiple linear models, using a 10-fold cross-validation method. The results showed that models that included either all variables and models or that only included the linear variables showed comparable performance, with a correlation of 0.72. Slightly worse general performance was demonstrated by the model that only included non-linear variables, although it proved to be more accurate at estimating the energy expenditures (EE) during specific tasks. These results suggest that smartphones could be a promising low-cost alternative to laboratory-grade accelerometers to estimate the energy expenditure of wheelchair users with spinal cord injury during daily activities.

Stress and autonomic response to sleep deprivation in medical residents: A comparative cross-sectional study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the stress suffered by medical residents as the result of being on call for 24 hours, from a multidimensional approach. Two groups of medical residents selected according to their work shift, participated in the study: one group (n = 40) was sleep-deprived after having been actively on-call for 24 hours, and another contrast group (n = 18) had performed a normal work day and were not sleep-deprived. All participants completed pre-post measures during a 24 h cycle. These were administered on both occasions at 8 am. The measures included HRV, cortisol, cognitive performance and transitory mood. The effect of the group x phase interaction was significant for all variables analysed, indicating that doctors in the 24h on-call shift group showed significant deterioration in all physiological, performance and mood indicators in comparison with the participants in the group not on call. These results suggest the need to review medical on-call systems, in order to reduce the stress load, which has a direct effect on working conditions.

Effect of Concurrent Visual Feedback Frequency on Postural Control Learning in Adolescents.

The purpose was to find better augmented visual feedback frequency (100% or 67%) for learning a balance task in adolescents. Thirty subjects were divided randomly into a control group, and 100% and 67% feedback groups. The three groups performed pretest (3 trials), practice (12 trials), posttest (3 trials) and retention (3 trials, 24 hours later). The reduced feedback group showed lower RMS in the posttest than in the pretest (p = 0.04). The control and reduced feedback groups showed significant lower median frequency in the posttest than in the pretest (p < 0.05). Both feedback groups showed lower values in retention than in the pretest (p < 0.05). Even when the effect of feedback frequency could not be detected in motor learning, 67% of the feedback was recommended for motor adaptation.