Exploring Sound Emission of the Lizard Pristidactylus valeriae.

Lizards, except geckos, are generally considered voiceless organisms, although some species emit oral sounds. For most of these "vocal lizards", however, there is almost no information on the characteristics of the sounds, precluding exploration of the functionality and evolution of the sounds. Pristidactylus are known as "grunter lizards" since individuals emit oral sounds under predation risk. We explored the characteristics of the sounds emitted by P. valeriae, recording 17 adults and 1 juvenile when they were threatened and captured by a predator. Only adults emitted sounds with open mouths and displayed aggressive postures, e.g., biting attempts. These sounds correspond to hisses, which lack amplitude or frequency modulation. The lizards emitted longer hisses when threatened than when captured by the predator, which may provide honest information on individuals' ability to escape. In addition, males may experience higher distress during threats since their hisses had higher aggregate entropy than those of the females. Finally, hissing has been documented in four of the five Leiosauridae genera, the family to which Pristidactylus belongs, suggesting that sound emission is ancestral to the family.

Effect of COVID-19 on Musculoskeletal Performance in Gait and the Timed-Up and Go Test.

INTRODUCTION: The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus infection is over 621 million in the world. In approximately 63% of cases, the patient still experiences persistent symptoms 30 days after the onset of symptoms or hospitalisation, and 45.9% of patients have experienced or will experience symptoms for at least three months. Despite the prevalence of chronic symptoms and pathological changes that may affect gait and functional mobility in people with a history of COVID-19, there are few publications investigating the impact of these abnormalities. This study aims to determine the long-term effects of COVID-19 on gait and the Timed-Up and Go Task. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 30 individuals took part in the experiment. The subjects in the study group were infected with the COVID-19 virus and required hospital treatment. Prior to the study, the subjects had no chronic diseases or other conditions affecting the musculoskeletal system. The non-infected by COVID-19 group was a healthy population with no history of COVID-19 disease. The study used the inertial system wireless motion analysis system based on 15 inertial sensors (inertial measurement units, IMUs). IMU sensors were placed on the following body segments: head, sternum, middle and lower spine, shoulder, arm, forearm, hand, shank, for the left and right limb. Movement task reports generated from the recording were created using myoRESEARCH 3.10. The subjects in the study group were asked to perform a movement task test-the Timed-Up and Go Test (TUG): sit-to-stand, walk (3 m) without change in direction, walk termination, and stand-to-sit. RESULTS: It took 46% longer for those infected by COVID-19 (participants) to complete the entire movement task compared to those in the not-infected by COVID-19 group. Sit-to-Stand Time [s] was greater in the infected by COVID-19 group and was 2.1 ± 0.7. Mean Walking Speed [m/s] was lower than in the not-infected by COVID-19 group and was 0.26 ± 0.07. Walking cadence [steps/min] was lower and was 21.2 ± 1.2. Infected by COVID-19 participants achieved a smaller anterior pelvic tilt angle (p < 0.001) and a smaller hip flexion angle (p = 0.025), with an increase in knee (p < 0.001) and ankle (p < 0.001) flexion angles. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals in the infected by COVID-19 group present changes in the ranges of motion and the time to complete the TUG task, despite the fact that at least eight weeks passed after hospital discharge.

Examination of running pattern consistency across speeds.

Duty factor (DF) and step frequency (SF) are key running pattern determinants. However, running patterns may change with speed if DF and SF changes are inconsistent across speeds. We examined whether the relative positioning of runners was consistent: 1) across five running speeds (10-18 km/h) for four temporal variables [DF, SF, and their subcomponents: contact (tc) and flight (tf) time]; and 2) across these four temporal variables at these five speeds. Three-dimensional whole-body kinematics were acquired from 52 runners, and deviations from the median for each variable (normalised to minimum-maximum values) were extracted. Across speeds for all variables, correlations on the relative positioning of individuals were high to very high for 2-4 km/h speed differences, and moderate to high for 6-8 km/h differences. Across variables for all speeds, correlations were low between DF-SF, very high between DF-tf, and low to high between DF-tc, SF-tc, and SF-tf. Hence, the consistency in running patterns decreased as speed differences increased, suggesting that running patterns be assessed using a range of speeds. Consistency in running patterns at a given speed was low between DF and SF, corroborating suggestions that using both variables can encapsulate the full running pattern spectrum.

Analysis of gait pattern between genders in Korean old people and the effect of dimensionless numbers.

The purpose of this study was to comparatively analyze normal gait on the plains by gender for old people reference data for the normal gait pattern for the old people. Participants were selected according to the Korean standard body type provided by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and used a three-dimensional motion analysis system. Cortex, Orthotrak, and Excel were used as the software for analyzing the extracted data, and IBM SPSS Statistics ver. 24.0 was used for statistical analysis. When data standardization was performed using the dimensionless numbers conversion, the step length and stride length of the lower extremities, which had differences between genders before dimensionless numbers conversion, showed no difference after dimensionless numbers conversion. Cadence, step time, and single support time of the left lower extremity, which had no difference between genders before dimensionless numbers conversion, were found to have significant differences after dimensionless numbers conversion. In addition, as a result of analyzing the coefficient of variation value to find out the degree of change in data due to dimensionless numbers conversion, there were increase and decrease in the coefficient of variation value ranging from -8.11% to 6.67% before and after dimensionless numbers conversion, which means dimensionless numbers conversion can affect the statistical test.

Temporal Variables in Voice Therapy.

OBJECTIVE: This study analyzed temporal voice therapy data (duration and frequency) as reported in the scientific literature between 1975 and May 2013. METHODS: A PubMed search was conducted using the keywords "voice and therapy" and "therapy and dysphonia," resulting in 93 qualified publications. This information was complemented by data reported in scientific textbooks (47 publications). RESULTS: The results show that voice therapy lasts an average of 9.25 weeks distributed over 10.87 sessions of mostly 30 (36.36%) or 60 minutes (27.27%) and occurs once (34.55%) or twice (28.18%) per week. The total amount of time that a voice therapist spends face-to-face with the patient is 8.17 hours on average. Substantial geographic differences are observed, but only data from North America and Europe are sufficiently represented. For North American patients, more sessions (12.52) are reported over a shorter period (7.62 weeks), resulting in more face-to-face time (12.15 hours) between therapist and patient. However, the opposite trend is true for European patients, who average 10.99 sessions over 10.12 weeks, resulting in 7.68 hours of face-to-face time. The potential impact of diagnosis, clinical practices, prescription habits, health insurance rules, patient compliance, and study design on the representativeness of the data is discussed. CONCLUSIONS: These results offer a frame of reference regarding international practices for temporal variables in voice therapy that may be useful when identifying voice therapy dosage and optimal practice.

Plantar Pressure Anomalies After Open Reduction With Internal Fixation of High-Grade Calcaneal Fractures.

BACKGROUND: Plantar pressure abnormalities after open reduction with internal fixation (ORIF) of intra-articular calcaneal fractures have been observed previously, but high-grade fractures were not selectively investigated and follow-up times were shorter than 2 years. The purpose of this study was to characterize plantar pressure anomalies in patients with exclusively high-grade calcaneal fractures after ORIF with a minimum 2 years of follow-up, and to test the association between plantar pressure distribution and the clinical outcome. METHODS: The orthopaedic registry was reviewed to identify patients with isolated high-grade calcaneal fractures (Sanders types III-IV) who were operated on and had a minimum 2 years of follow-up. Sixteen patients were evaluated. Mean age was 47 years and follow-up was between 2 and 6 years. The Pedar-Mobile system was used to measure 3 loading and 3 temporal variables and compare these between the operated and the uninjured limbs. RESULTS: Mean American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score was 76 ± 7 at latest follow-up. Bohler's angle was 5 ± 8 degrees before surgery and 25 ± 7 degrees at latest follow-up. Stance was shorter in operated limbs (P = .001). Timing of the peak of pressure was delayed in operated limbs under the hallux and the second toe (P ≤ .03). Peak pressure, force time integral, and pressure time integral were increased under the lateral midfoot (P ≤ .03) and decreased under the second metatarsal (P ≤ .03). Force time integral was decreased under the first metatarsal (P = .02) and under the hallux and the lateral toes (P ≤ .05). Increased loading under the lateral midfoot and decreased loading under the lateral toes were correlated with poorer clinical outcome (r = -.53, P < .05, and r = .63, P < .01, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Side-to-side plantar pressure mismatch persisted at more than 2 years after ORIF of high-grade calcaneal fractures performed via lateral approach, despite improvement of Bohler's angle. This was characterized by shortened stance phase, delayed timing of peak of pressure under the hallux and second toe, lateral load shift at the midfoot, and decreased toe pressures in operated limbs. Since loading abnormalities were correlated with the clinical outcome, modifications in treatment strategy that can improve foot loading may be desirable in these cases. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, case control.

Efectos de variables ambientales sobre la ingesta de alimento en ratas: una revisión histórico-conceptual / Effects of environmental variables on eating behavior in rats: a conceptual and historical review

El propósito de la presente revisión fue mostrar los efectos de variables ambientales sobre la ingesta de alimento, en ratas. El fenómeno alimentario se ha abordado desde diferentes perspectivas, así que en esta revisión únicamente se incluyeron estudios en lo que se utilizaron ratas y se registró la cantidad de alimento consumido o alguna respuesta operante. Se sugieren dos variables temporales, el intervalo entre accesos al alimento y la duración del acceso al alimento, como potenciales integradoras de los efectos reportados en diversos estudios dado que son dos variables comunes a una gran cantidad de procedimientos. Con ambas variables se pretende desarrollar un modelo experimental animal que incluya casos relacionados con la conducta humana como la anorexia y la bulimia.

The purpose of this review was to show the effects of environmental variableson the eating behavior in rats. The eating behavior and its relatedvariables have been analyzed since a variety of perspectives. The presentreview included studies in which rats were used as subjects and the totalfood intake or any operant response related to obtaining food was registered.Two variables, inter access-to-food interval and access-to-food duration, aresuggested as possible integrating variables given that both are common tomany experimental procedures. These variables set the occasion for developingan animal experimental model that includes cases related to eatinghuman behavior such as anorexia or bulimia.