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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In this Special Issue, the intention is to gather articles that discuss novel interventions aiming to prevent falls in individuals with movement disorders. Articles that discuss novel assessment methods and interventions regarding aspects of gait and posture will be included. Moreover, qualitative studies that discuss the needs and experiences of fall-prone population groups will also be included. This Special Issue, “Fall prevention: Novel interventions for improving gait and posture in movement disorders” is dedicated to addressing existing gaps in the field of neurologic rehabilitation. It will describe achievements in clinical care, education, training, and research. Case studies, research, and review articles are welcome.

Dr. Shashank Ghai
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

gait
posture
falls
biomechanics
rehabilitation
kinematic analysis
physiotherapy
experiences
quality of life
movement disorders
caregivers
social support
systematic review
meta-analysis
cost-effectiveness

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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41 pages, 4786 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The ‘Postural Rhythm’ of the Ground Reaction Force during Upright Stance and Its Conversion to Body Sway—The Effect of Vision, Support Surface and Adaptation to Repeated Trials

by Stefania Sozzi, Shashank Ghai and Marco Schieppati

Brain Sci. 2023, 13(7), 978; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13070978 - 21 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1309

Abstract

The ground reaction force (GRF) recorded by a platform when a person stands upright lies at the interface between the neural networks controlling stance and the body sway deduced from centre of pressure (CoP) displacement. It can be decomposed into vertical (VGRF) and horizontal (HGRF) vectors. Few studies have addressed the modulation of the GRFs by the sensory conditions and their relationship with body sway. We reconsidered the features of the GRFs oscillations in healthy young subjects (n = 24) standing for 90 s, with the aim of characterising the possible effects of vision, support surface and adaptation to repeated trials, and the correspondence between HGRF and CoP time-series. We compared the frequency spectra of these variables with eyes open or closed on solid support surface (EOS, ECS) and on foam (EOF, ECF). All stance trials were repeated in a sequence of eight. Conditions were randomised across different days. The oscillations of the VGRF, HGRF and CoP differed between each other, as per the dominant frequency of their spectra (around 4 Hz, 0.8 Hz and <0.4 Hz, respectively) featuring a low-pass filter effect from VGRF to HGRF to CoP. GRF frequencies hardly changed as a function of the experimental conditions, including adaptation. CoP frequencies diminished to <0.2 Hz when vision was available on hard support surface. Amplitudes of both GRFs and CoP oscillations decreased in the order ECF > EOF > ECS ≈ EOS. Adaptation had no effect except in ECF condition. Specific rhythms of the GRFs do not transfer to the CoP frequency, whereas the magnitude of the forces acting on the ground ultimately determines body sway. The discrepancies in the time-series of the HGRF and CoP oscillations confirm that the body’s oscillation mode cannot be dictated by the inverted pendulum model in any experimental conditions. The findings emphasise the robustness of the VGRF “postural rhythm” and its correspondence with the cortical theta rhythm, shed new insight on current principles of balance control and on understanding of upright stance in healthy and elderly people as well as on injury prevention and rehabilitation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fall Prevention: Novel Interventions for Improving Gait and Posture in Movement Disorders)

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Other

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23 pages, 3174 KiB

Open AccessSystematic Review

Does Music Therapy Improve Gait after Traumatic Brain Injury and Spinal Cord Injury? A Mini Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

by Shashank Ghai

Brain Sci. 2023, 13(3), 522; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13030522 - 21 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2796

Abstract

There is a growing body of research examining the potential benefits of music therapy-based auditory stimulation (MT) for individuals with movement disorders in improving gait performance. However, there is limited knowledge about the effects of MT on gait outcomes in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injury (SCI). A previous review of MT’s impact on gait in TBI had limitations, and there are no studies on its effects on gait in SCI. In this study, we conducted a meta-analysis to more thoroughly evaluate the impact of MT on gait outcomes in individuals with TBI and SCI. We systematically searched through eight databases and found six studies on MT in TBI and four on SCI. Our meta-analysis showed that MT has positive medium effect improvements on spatiotemporal aspects of gait in individuals with TBI (Hedge’s g: 0.52) and SCI (0.53). These findings suggest that MT could be a practical intervention for enhancing different aspects of gait in these populations, although the limited number and “fair” quality of the studies included in the meta-analysis may affect the generalizability of the outcomes. Further research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms by which MT may influence gait and determine the optimal parameters for its use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fall Prevention: Novel Interventions for Improving Gait and Posture in Movement Disorders)

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