Concurrent validation of the OMNI-Resistance Exercise Scale of perceived exertion with elastic bands in the elderly.

Purpose:\ud To examine the concurrent validity of the OMNI-Resistance Exercise Scale of perceived exertion using elastic bands in elder population.\ud \ud Methods:\ud Twenty-six participants performed three separate sets of 15 repetitions (low- medium- and high-intensity) for 4 different exercises (2 for the upper-limb and 2 for the lower limb), over two different testing sessions. The criterion variables were heart rate and applied force (average and maximum). In addition to these dependent variables, the active muscle and overall body OMNI-RES for elastic bands scores were collected at the end of each repetition.\ud \ud Results:\ud Significant differences in heart rate, applied force and …

Safety, Fear and Neuromuscular Responses after a Resisted Knee Extension Performed to Failure in Patients with Severe Haemophilia

BACKGROUND: low-moderate intensity strength training to failure increases strength and muscle hypertrophy in healthy people. However, no study assessed the safety and neuromuscular response of training to failure in people with severe haemophilia (PWH). The purpose of the study was to analyse neuromuscular responses, fear of movement, and possible adverse effects in PWH, after knee extensions to failure.METHODS: twelve severe PWH in prophylactic treatment performed knee extensions until failure at an intensity of five on the Borg CR10 scale. Normalised values of amplitude (nRMS) and neuromuscular fatigue were determined using surface electromyography for the rectus femoris, vastus medialis,…

Effects of one year of training with elastic bands on the pain in menopausal women

Antecedentes y objetivos: En la literatura, la relación entre el entrenamiento de la fuerza con banda elástica, la proteína C reactiva y el dolor musculoesquelético en mujeres posmenopáusicas aún no está claro. El objetivo del presente estudio fue investigar los efectos de un año de entrenamiento de resistencia progresiva con bandas elásticas en los parámetros de la proteína C reactiva, el dolor y la composición corporal en mujeres posmenopáusicas. Población: Mujeres posmenopáusicas sedentarias (> 12 meses de amenorrea). Método: Cuarenta mujeres realizaron un entrenamiento de resistencia progresivo durante 12 meses (6 ejercicios para todo el cuerpo, 3 series x 10 repeticiones y la intensida…

Cross-sectional study of quadriceps properties and postural stability in patients with chronic stroke and limited vs. non-limited community ambulation.

Background: Changes in the paretic-side metabolism post-stroke and quadriceps muscle mechanical properties favour muscle wasting, affecting postural instability and walking impairment. Further clar...

Electromyographic and Safety Comparisons of Common Lower Limb Rehabilitation Exercises for People With Hemophilia.

Abstract Background Ankles and knees are commonly affected in people with hemophilia and thus are targets for prevention or rehabilitation. However, to our knowledge, no studies have evaluated muscle activity and safety during exercises targeting the lower limbs in people with hemophilia; this lack of information hinders clinical decision-making. Objective The aim of this study was to compare the tolerability of, safety of, and muscle activity levels obtained with external resistance (elastic or machine)-based and non–external resistance-based lower limb exercises in people with hemophilia. Design This was a cross-sectional study. Methods Eleven people who had severe hemophilia and were und…

HemoKinect: A Microsoft Kinect V2 Based Exergaming Software to Supervise Physical Exercise of Patients with Hemophilia

Patients with hemophilia need to strictly follow exercise routines to minimize their risk of suffering bleeding in joints, known as hemarthrosis. This paper introduces and validates a new exergaming software tool called HemoKinect that intends to keep track of exercises using Microsoft Kinect V2&rsquo

Global and Local Clustering-Based Regression Models to Forecast Power Consumption in Buildings

The study of energy efficiency in buildings is an active field of research. Modeling and predicting energy related magnitudes leads to analyze electric power consumption and can achieve economical benefits. In this study, classical time series analysis and machine learning techniques, introducing clustering in some models, are applied to predict active power in buildings. The real data acquired corresponds to time, environmental and electrical data of 30 buildings belonging to the University of León (Spain). Firstly, we segmented buildings in terms of their energy consumption using principal component analysis. Afterwards, we applied state of the art machine learning methods and compare bet…

Feasibility, safety and muscle activity during flywheel vs traditional strength training in adult patients with severe haemophilia

INTRODUCTION: Eccentric training has been associated with several specific physiological adaptations. The flywheel machine is one of the easiest ways of performing eccentric overload training. However, no studies evaluated its feasibility, safety and muscle activity in patients with haemophilia (PWH).AIM: To evaluate feasibility and safety and compare muscle activity during flywheel vs weight machine knee extension exercise in severe PWH.METHODS: Eleven severe PWH [mean age of 33.5 (8.1) years] participated in this cross-sectional study after receiving prophylactic treatment. Surface electromyography (EMG) signals were recorded for the rectus femoris during the knee extension exercise perfo…

Effects of performing dual tasks on postural sway and postural control complexity in people with haemophilic arthropathy

Introduction People with haemophilic arthropathy (PWHA) have impairments in postural control. However, little is known about the effects of demanding conditions, including the unipedal stance and dual tasks, on postural control in PWHA. Aim Determine the effects of performing dual tasks while in the one-leg stance on postural sway and postural control complexity in PWHA vs. healthy active (HAG) and non-active (HNAG) groups of individuals. Methods Fifteen PWHA and 34 healthy subjects (18 active and 16 non-active) were recruited. Vertical (V), mediolateral (ML) and anteroposterior (AP) centre of mass signals were acquired using a 3-axis accelerometer placed at the L3/L4 vertebrae of subjects …

EMG, Rate of Perceived Exertion, Pain, Tolerability and Possible Adverse Effects of a Knee Extensor Exercise with Progressive Elastic Resistance in Patients with Severe Haemophilia

In people with haemophilia (PWH), elastic band training is considered an optimal option, even though the literature is scarce. The aim was to evaluate normalized electromyographic amplitude (nEMG), rate of perceived exertion (RPE), pain, tolerability, and possible adverse effects during the knee extension exercise using multiple elastic resistance intensities in PWH. During a single session, 14 severe PWH undergoing prophylactic treatment performed knee extensions without resistance and with different intensity levels of elastic resistance. nEMG was measured for the knee extensors and participants rated their RPE, tolerability and pain intensity after each condition. Patients had to report …

Validity of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Long Form for Assessing Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in Subjects with Chronic Stroke

Validation studies of questionnaires used to assess physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in stroke survivors are scarce. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the validity of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire long-form (IPAQ-LF) in community living adults with post-stroke sequelae (≥6 months) and preserved ambulation. Participants’ functional mobility, lower limb strength, ambulatory level, stroke severity, and disability were assessed. An accelerometer (ActiGraph GT3X+) was worn for ≥7 consecutive days. Subsequently, the IPAQ-LF was interview-administered. Fifty-six participants (58.1 ± 11.1 years, 66.1% male) were included. A strong correlation between …

Educational Software Based on Matlab GUIs for Neural Networks Courses

Neural Networks (NN) are one of the most used machine learning techniques in different areas of knowledge. This has led to the emergence of a large number of courses of Neural Networks around the world and in areas where the users of this technique do not have a lot of programming skills. Current software that implements these elements, such as Matlab®, has a number of important limitations in teaching field. In some cases, the implementation of a MLP requires a thorough knowledge of the software and of the instructions that train and validate these systems. In other cases, the architecture of the model is fixed and they do not allow an automatic sweep of the parameters that determine the a…

Effect of a 1-year elastic band resistance exercise program on cardiovascular risk profile in postmenopausal women

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a 1-year progressive resistance training program using elastic bands on cardiovascular profile parameters in sedentary postmenopausal (>12 months’ amenorrhea) women. Methods: This longitudinal prospective experimental study included 38 menopausal women who were randomly divided into two groups: an intervention group (IG, n = 18), who completed a progressive resistance training program with elastic bands over the course of 12 months (six exercises for whole body training, three sets × 10 repetitions), and a control group (CG, n = 20) that did not perform any training. Blood analysis and body composition were determined at bas…

Students’ Perceptions of Instructional Rubrics in Neurological Physical Therapy and Their Effects on Students’ Engagement and Course Satisfaction

One of the main challenges faced by physical therapy (PT) students is to learn the practical skills involved in neurological physical therapy (PT). To help them to acquire these skills, a set of rubrics were designed for formative purposes. This paper presents the process followed in the creation of these rubrics and their application in the classroom, noting that students perceived them as valid, reliable, and highly useful for learning. The perception of the validity and usefulness of the rubrics has different closely related dimensions, showing homogeneous values across the students´ sociodemographic and educational variables, with the exception of dedication to studying, which showed a …

Response letter. Effects of a vestibular physiotherapy protocol on adults with intellectual disability in the prevention of falls: A multi‐centre clinical trial

ELM Regularized Method for Classification Problems

Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) is a recently proposed algorithm, efficient and fast for learning the parameters of single layer neural structures. One of the main problems of this algorithm is to choose the optimal architecture for a given problem solution. To solve this limitation several solutions have been proposed in the literature, including the regularization of the structure. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are no works where such adjustment is applied to classification problems in the presence of a non-linearity in the output; all published works tackle modelling or regression problems. Our proposal has been applied to a series of standard databases for the evaluation o…

Balance evaluation in haemophilic preadolescent patients using Nintendo Wii Balance Board®

Introduction: Alterations in the musculoskeletal system, especially in the lower limbs, limit physical activity and affect balance and walking. Postural impairments in haemophilic preteens could increase the risk of bleeding events and deteriorate the physical condition, promoting the progression of haemophilic arthropathy. Aim: This study aims to evaluate static postural balance in haemophilic children, assessed by means of the Wii Balance Board® (WBB). Methods: Nineteen children with haemophilia and 19 without haemophilia aged 9-10 years, have participated in this study. Postural balance was assessed by performing four tests, each one lasting 15 s: bipodal eyes open (BEO), bipodal eyes cl…

Effects of a non-pharmacological approach for chronic pain management in patients with haemophilia: efficacy of cognitive-behavioural therapy associated with physiotherapy.

INTRODUCTION More than half of adult patients with severe haemophilia (PWH) suffer pain daily, with chronic pain (CP) in more than 15% of cases, thereby reducing their quality of life (QoL). However, there are no evidence-based therapeutic guidelines for pain management. AIM To evaluate the effectiveness of a combined protocol based on psychology and physiotherapy in the improvement of CP self-efficacy in PWH with CP. Secondary outcomes are changes in QoL, emotional status, pain and kinesiophobia. METHODS In this prospective controlled trial study, recruited patients were allocated either to an experimental group (EG, n = 10) or to a control group (CG, n = 9). EG received interventions over…

Sporting Activities and Quality of Life in Children With Hemophilia: An Observational Study.

Sports activities are part of multidisciplinary treatments in people with hemophilia. Aim: The objective of this study was to assess the incidence of sports activities in the quality of life as perceived by children with hemophilia. Methods: A total of 53 children with hemophilia aged 7 to 13 years and 51 children without hemophilia were evaluated. The perception of quality of life, clinical variables, and the frequency of sports activities were registered. The joint condition of patients with hemophilia was measured with the Spanish version of the Haemophilia Joint Health Score. Results: There were no significant differences in the perception of quality of life between children with hemoph…

Benefits of Ehl Factor VIII Replacement Therapy in Hemophilia: Observations on Coverage, Physical Activity and Phisiotherapy

Introduction: Prevention of haemophilic arthropathy and quality of life´s (QoL) improvement are still the main goals in the haemophilia community. Haemophilic arthropathy is the result of clinical and subclinical bleeding during everyday activities and/or traumatic situations. Prophylaxis with extended half-life (EHL) factor replacement therapy is understood as an improvement solution for factor VIII (FVIII) PK properties, as half-life (T1/2) and area under the curve (AUC), however few real world data are yet available. EHL improved pharmacokinetic (PK) properties might directly drive into a reduction of the bleeding risk during physical activity (both therapeutical or leisure) for a longer…

Safety and Effectiveness of Progressive Moderate-to-Vigorous Intensity Elastic Resistance Training on Physical Function and Pain in People With Hemophilia.

Abstract Objective Strength training is recommended for people with hemophilia; however, published data are anecdotal and have methodological limitations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of progressive moderate-to-vigorous intensity elastic resistance training on physical function and pain in this patient population. Methods A randomized controlled trial was conducted in a university laboratory setting where 20 patients (17 with severe, 1 with moderate, and 2 with mild hemophilia) aged 21 to 53 years received evaluations at baseline and 8-week follow-up. Participants were allocated to intervention (progressive strength training) or control (usual daily…

Differences in Inter-Rectus Distance and Abdominopelvic Function between Nulliparous, Primiparous and Multiparous Women

Widening of the inter-rectus distance (IRD) is highly prevalent among postpartum women and can lead to dysfunction of abdominopelvic muscles. The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in IRD and abdominopelvic function between nulliparous, primiparous and multiparous women. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 75 women (25 nulliparous, 25 primiparous and 25 multiparous at 6 months postpartum). The participants underwent ultrasound assessment under three conditions (at rest, abdominal draw-in maneuver (ADIM) and curl-up) at two locations (2 cm above and 2 cm below the umbilicus). Furthermore, abdominopelvic muscle function was determined by prone, supine and side bridge tests…

Machine learning methods to forecast temperature in buildings

Efficient management of energy in buildings saves a very important amount of resources (both economic and technological). As a consequence, there is a very active research in this field. One of the keys of energy management is the prediction of the variables that directly affect building energy consumption and personal comfort. Among these variables, one can highlight the temperature in each room of a building. In this work we apply different machine learning techniques along with other classical ones for predicting the temperatures in different rooms. The obtained results demonstrate the validity of these techniques for predicting temperatures and, therefore, for the establishment of optim…

Early detection of mechanical damage in mango using NIR hyperspectral images and machine learning

Mango fruit are sensitive and can easily develop brown spots after suffering mechanical stress during postharvest handling, transport and marketing. The manual inspection of this fruit used today cannot detect the damage in very early stages of maturity and to date no automatic tool capable of such detection has been developed, since current systems based on machine vision only detect very visible damage. The application of hyperspectral imaging to the postharvest quality inspection of fruit is relatively recent and research is still underway to find a method of estimating internal properties or detecting invisible damage. This work describes a new system to evaluate mechanically induced da…

Effect of radiosynoviorthesis on the progression of arthropathy and haemarthrosis reduction in haemophilic patients.

IntroductionRepeated haemarthrosis is widely accepted as the triggering cause of synovitis and haemophilic arthropathy. A first-line treatment of chronic synovitis is radiosynoviorthesis (RS). The aim of this study was to evaluate the RS effects on the progression of arthropathy and on a reduction in bleeding in patients with haemophilia. MethodsAn observational-retrospective study was performed. Bleeding episodes in the 12months following and in the 12months preceding RS was compared. The arthropathy was clinically and radiologically analysed by age range, joint and subject, comparing those undergoing RS (Radiosynoviorthesis Group, RSG) against those not undergoing this treatment (Non-Radi…

Association of Barriers, Fear of Falling and Fatigue with Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in Chronic Stroke.

Understanding the fostering factors of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in post-stroke chronic survivors is critical to address preventive and health interventions. This cross-sectional study aimed to analyze the association of barriers to PA, fear of falling and severity of fatigue encountered by stroke chronic survivors with device-measured PA and SB. Ambulatory community-dwelling post-stroke subjects (≥six months from stroke onset) were evaluated and answered the Barriers to Physical Activity after Stroke Scale (BAPAS), Short Falls Efficacy Scale-International (Short FES-I) and Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). SB and PA were measured with an Actigraph GT3X+ accelerometer f…

Physical Activity Monitoring and Acceptance of a Commercial Activity Tracker in Adult Patients with Haemophilia.

Physical activity (PA) is highly beneficial for people with haemophilia (PWH), however, studies that objectively monitor the PA in this population are scarce. This study aimed to monitor the daily PA and analyse its evolution over time in a cohort of PWH using a commercial activity tracker. In addition, this work analyses the relationship between PA levels, demographics, and joint health status, as well as the acceptance and adherence to the activity tracker. Twenty-six PWH were asked to wear a Fitbit Charge HR for 13 weeks. According to the steps/day in the first week, data were divided into two groups: Active Group (AG

Quantification of physical activity in adult patients with haemophilic arthropathy in prophylaxis treatment using a fitness tracker

Effects of a vestibular physiotherapy protocol on adults with intellectual disability in the prevention of falls: A multi-centre clinical trial

Background Balance alterations are one of the main problems in people with intellectual disabilities (ID), increasing their risk of falls and impacting their life. Aims To describe a vestibular rehabilitation programme (VRP) and evaluate its effects on the ability to maintain balance and risk of suffering a fall. Methods Forty-seven adults with mild to moderate ID were randomly assigned to two groups: a control group (CG, N = 24), which performed a general physical exercise only, and an experimental group (EG, N = 23) which also completed a VRP. The variables, used pre- and post-training and 1 month after the intervention, were as follows: Center of Pressure Displacement, Berg Scale, Timed …

Forecasting Techniques for Energy Optimization in Buildings

Upper-Body Exercises With External Resistance Are Well Tolerated and Enhance Muscle Activity in People With Hemophilia

Abstract Background Conventional nonresisted therapeutic exercises for people with hemophilia involve a careful, low-intensity approach to avoid injuries. Externally resisted exercise is highly efficient for increasing muscle strength in healthy adults but its feasibility for people with hemophilia remains unknown. Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate muscle activity during upper-body rehabilitation exercises with 2 types of external resistance and without external resistance (conventional) and to examine tolerability, kinesiophobia, and possible adverse effects derived from the session. Design This was a cross-sectional study. Methods Twelve people with hemophilia A/B (11 wi…

Assessment of Kinect V2 for elbow range of motion estimation in people with haemophilia using an angle correction model

Introduction The joint range of motion (ROM) is an important clinical parameter used to assess the loss of functionality resulting from joint bleedings in people with haemophilia. These episodes require a close follow-up and, to decrease patients' hospital dependence, telemedicine tools are needed. Therefore, this study is aimed to analyse the validity of the Microsoft Kinect V2 sensor with corrected angle measurement to be used in the monitoring of elbow ROM in people with haemophilia. Methods A convenience sample of 10 healthy controls (CG) and 10 patients with haemophilia with elbow arthropathy (HG) participated in this study. Full ROM of elbow joints was measured in the frontal view wit…

Prediction of Temperature in Buildings Using Machine Learning Techniques

Energy efficiency is a trend due to ecological and economic benefits. Within this field, energy efficiency in buildings sector constitutes one of the main concerns due to the fact that approximately 40% of total world energy consumption corresponds to this sector. Climate control in buildings has the potential to increase its energy efficiency planning strategies for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) machines. These planning strategies may include a stage for long term indoor temperature forecasting. This chapter entails the use of four prediction models (NAÏVE, MLR, MLP, FIS and ANFIS) to forecast temperature in an office building using a temporal horizon of several hour…