TY - JOUR A1 - Puschmann, Anne-Katrin A1 - Lin, Chiao-I A1 - Wippert, Pia-Maria T1 - Sustainability of a motor control exercise intervention BT - Analysis of long-term effects in a low back pain study JF - Frontiers in sports and active living N2 - Development of chronic pain after a low back pain episode is associated with increased pain sensitivity, altered pain processing mechanisms and the influence of psychosocial factors. Although there is some evidence that multimodal therapy (such as behavioral or motor control therapy) may be an important therapeutic strategy, its long-term effect on pain reduction and psychosocial load is still unclear. Prospective longitudinal designs providing information about the extent of such possible long-term effects are missing. This study aims to investigate the long-term effects of a homebased uni- and multidisciplinary motor control exercise program on low back pain intensity, disability and psychosocial variables. 14 months after completion of a multicenter study comparing uni- and multidisciplinary exercise interventions, a sample of one study center (n = 154) was assessed once more. Participants filled in questionnaires regarding their low back pain symptoms (characteristic pain intensity and related disability), stress and vital exhaustion (short version of the Maastricht Vital Exhaustion Questionnaire), anxiety and depression experiences (the Hospital and Anxiety Depression Scale), and pain-related cognitions (the Fear Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire). Repeated measures mixed ANCOVAs were calculated to determine the long-term effects of the interventions on characteristic pain intensity and disability as well as on the psychosocial variables. Fifty four percent of the sub-sample responded to the questionnaires (n = 84). Longitudinal analyses revealed a significant long-term effect of the exercise intervention on pain disability. The multidisciplinary group missed statistical significance yet showed a medium sized long-term effect. The groups did not differ in their changes of the psychosocial variables of interest. There was evidence of long-term effects of the interventions on pain-related disability, but there was no effect on the other variables of interest. This may be partially explained by participant's low comorbidities at baseline. Results are important regarding costless homebased alternatives for back pain patients and prevention tasks. Furthermore, this study closes the gap of missing long-term effect analysis in this field. KW - MiSpEx KW - low back pain KW - long-term effects KW - multidisciplinary intervention KW - sustainability Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2021.659982 SN - 2624-9367 VL - 3 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - Frontiers Media CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lehmann, Nico A1 - Kuhn, Yves-Alain A1 - Keller, Martin A1 - Aye, Norman A1 - Herold, Fabian A1 - Draganski, Bogdan A1 - Taube, Wolfgang A1 - Taubert, Marco T1 - Brain activation during active balancing and its behavioral relevance in younger and older adults BT - a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) study JF - Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience N2 - Age-related deterioration of balance control is widely regarded as an important phenomenon influencing quality of life and longevity, such that a more comprehensive understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying this process is warranted. Specifically, previous studies have reported that older adults typically show higher neural activity during balancing as compared to younger counterparts, but the implications of this finding on balance performance remain largely unclear. Using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), differences in the cortical control of balance between healthy younger (n = 27) and older (n = 35) adults were explored. More specifically, the association between cortical functional activity and balance performance across and within age groups was investigated. To this end, we measured hemodynamic responses (i.e., changes in oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin) while participants balanced on an unstable device. As criterion variables for brain-behavior-correlations, we also assessed postural sway while standing on a free-swinging platform and while balancing on wobble boards with different levels of difficulty. We found that older compared to younger participants had higher activity in prefrontal and lower activity in postcentral regions. Subsequent robust regression analyses revealed that lower prefrontal brain activity was related to improved balance performance across age groups, indicating that higher activity of the prefrontal cortex during balancing reflects neural inefficiency. We also present evidence supporting that age serves as a moderator in the relationship between brain activity and balance, i.e., cortical hemodynamics generally appears to be a more important predictor of balance performance in the older than in the younger. Strikingly, we found that age differences in balance performance are mediated by balancing-induced activation of the superior frontal gyrus, thus suggesting that differential activation of this region reflects a mechanism involved in the aging process of the neural control of balance. Our study suggests that differences in functional brain activity between age groups are not a mere by-product of aging, but instead of direct behavioral relevance for balance performance. Potential implications of these findings in terms of early detection of fall-prone individuals and intervention strategies targeting balance and healthy aging are discussed. KW - aging KW - neuroimaging KW - functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) KW - balance KW - postural control KW - prefrontal cortex KW - neural inefficiency Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2022.828474 SN - 1663-4365 VL - 14 PB - Frontiers Media CY - Lausanne ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Herold, Fabian A1 - Theobald, Paula A1 - Gronwald, Thomas A1 - Rapp, Michael A. A1 - Müller, Notger Germar T1 - Going digital – a commentary on the terminology used at the intersection of physical activity and digital health JF - European review of aging and physical activity N2 - In recent years digital technologies have become a major means for providing health-related services and this trend was strongly reinforced by the current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. As it is well-known that regular physical activity has positive effects on individual physical and mental health and thus is an important prerequisite for healthy aging, digital technologies are also increasingly used to promote unstructured and structured forms of physical activity. However, in the course of this development, several terms (e.g., Digital Health, Electronic Health, Mobile Health, Telehealth, Telemedicine, and Telerehabilitation) have been introduced to refer to the application of digital technologies to provide health-related services such as physical interventions. Unfortunately, the above-mentioned terms are often used in several different ways, but also relatively interchangeably. Given that ambiguous terminology is a major source of difficulty in scientific communication which can impede the progress of theoretical and empirical research, this article aims to make the reader aware of the subtle differences between the relevant terms which are applied at the intersection of physical activity and Digital Health and to provide state-of-art definitions for them. KW - Digital Health KW - Electronic Health KW - Mobile Health KW - Telehealth KW - Telemedicine KW - Physical activity KW - Physical training KW - Aging Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-022-00296-y SN - 1861-6909 VL - 19 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ; Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Dobberke, Jeanette A1 - Baritello, Omar A1 - Hadzic, Miralem A1 - Völler, Heinz A1 - Eichler, Sarah A1 - Salzwedel, Annett T1 - Test-retest reliability of center of pressure measures for postural control assessment in older cardiac patients JF - Gait & posture : official journal of Gait and Clinical Movement Analysis Society (GCMAS) and European Society of Movement Analysis in Adults and Children (ESMAC) N2 - Background Elderly patients are a growing population in cardiac rehabilitation (CR). As postural control declines with age, assessment of impaired balance is important in older CR patients in order to predict fall risk and to initiate counteracting steps. Functional balance tests are subjective and lack adequate sensitivity to small differences, and are further subject to ceiling effects. A quantitative approach to measure postural control on a continuous scale is therefore desirable. Force plates are already used for this purpose in other clinical contexts, therefore could be a promising tool also for older CR patients. However, in this population the reliability of the assessment is not fully known. Research question Analysis of test-retest reliability of center of pressure (CoP) measures for the assessment of postural control using a force plate in older CR patients. Methods 156 CR patients (> 75 years) were enrolled. CoP measures (path length (PL), mean velocity (MV), and 95% confidence ellipse area (95CEA)) were analyzed twice with an interval of two days in between (bipedal narrow stance, eyes open (EO) and closed (EC), three trials for each condition, 30 s per trial), using a force plate. For test-retest reliability estimation absolute differences (& UDelta;: T0-T1), intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) with 95% confidence intervals, standard error of measurement and minimal detectable change were calculated. Results Under EO condition ICC were excellent for PL and MV (0.95) and good for 95CEA (0.88) with & UDelta; of 10.1 cm (PL), 0.3 cm/sec (MV) and 1.5 cm(2 )(95CEA) respectively. Under EC condition ICC were excellent (> 0.95) for all variables with larger & UDelta; (PL: 21.7 cm; MV: 0.7 cm/sec; 95CEA: 2.4 cm(2)) Significance In older CR patients, the assessment of CoP measures using a force plate shows good to excellent test retest reliability. KW - Cardiac rehabilitation KW - Older patients KW - Postural control KW - Test-retest KW - reliability KW - Force plate Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2021.12.011 SN - 0966-6362 SN - 1879-2219 VL - 92 SP - 359 EP - 363 PB - Elsevier Science CY - Amsterdam ER -