Average Movement Time Research Articles

ВИКОРИСТАННЯ КОМП’ЮТЕРНИХ ТЕСТ-ТРЕНАЖЕРІВ ДЛЯ ВИЗНАЧЕННЯ І РОЗВИТКУ ПСИХОФІЗІОЛОГІЧНИХ ЯКОСТЕЙ ЮНИХ СПОРТСМЕНІВ

The current task for coaches nowadays is to choose an adequate method for assessing psychophysiological abilities, diagnosing, and further developing the psychophysiological qualities of young athletes to organize and correct training and competitive processes. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of computer test simulator programs for developing the psychophysiological qualities of young athletes, individualizing, and optimizing their training process. Using computer test simulators with the programs "MY_TIMER" and "FISHKI.INI", psychophysiological indicators were measured before and after training in five repetitions among 14 schoolchildren aged 12-14 from a secondary education institution. Statistical data processing was conducted using Microsoft Excel. Results: Unreliable differences (p ≥ 0.5) were found between the psychophysiological parameters of young swimmers before and after training. During the computer testing process, increases were observed in the total working time for each of the five tasks (indicating improved speed of thinking) by 18.5%, and in minimum, average, and maximum movement time by 14.3%, 11.1%, and 8.3%, respectively. However, the thinking factor decreased by 16% after training, which impedes the ability to perform operational tasks impromptu. Exercising in areas of high and moderate power leads to fatigue in the cortex of the large hemispheres of the brain, where operational control is carried out. Consequently, young athletes experience both physical and mental fatigue after training. The use of computer test simulators for determining and developing the psychophysiological indicators of young athletes is relevant, promising, and effective. These tools allow for the scientific substantiation of individualized training loads and the rapid assessment of athletes' current functional states. The "FISHKI.INI" program should be used for diagnosing and further developing psychophysiological qualities such as attention, operational thinking, and the dominance of figurative or visual-action thinking. This program enables the quantitative assessment of young athletes' characteristics and improves these qualities with high efficiency through the use of computer test simulators.

Effectiveness of acupoint stimulation combined with neurogenic bowel training on constipation in stroke patients: a retrospective study

Objective To analyze the effectiveness of acupoint stimulation combined with neurogenic bowel training on constipation in stroke patients. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 89 stroke patients with constipation admitted to our hospital from July 2022 to January 2024. All patients met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The control group (n = 42) received neurogenic bowel training intervention, while the experimental group (n = 47) received finger acupoint stimulation combined with neurogenic bowel training intervention. Four outcome measures including intervention effects, bowel movements, Constipation Scoring System (CSS), and Scores on the Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life (PAC-QOL) were compared between the two groups. Results The total intervention effective rate in the experimental group (91.49%) was significantly higher than that in the control group (73.81%) (p < 0.05). Two weeks after intervention, the experimental group had significantly better first bowel movement time, average bowel movement time, and bowel movement interval time compared to the control group (p < 0.05). One and 2 weeks after intervention, the CSS and PAC-QOL scores in the experimental group were significantly better than those in the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion Acupoint stimulation combined with neurogenic bowel training significantly improves constipation in stroke patients. Compared to neurogenic bowel training alone, the combined application of acupoint stimulation further improves bowel movements, reduces constipation severity, and enhances the quality of life in patients. Therefore, it is worthy of clinical promotion.

Ab. No. 171 Correlation between Gait Speed and Movement Time of Upper Limb Tasks in Younger Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Movement Time is an important variable as it influences the way we control our movement. An estimation of movement time in normal individuals helps physiotherapists constitute normative values. The gait speed of a person is used as a guide to implement intervention strategies and is a measure of functional independence. A correlation between gait speed and movement time would allow us to recognize various changes in the early stages of movement disorders.The study aims to find a correlation between the gait speed and movement time of upper limb tasks in younger adults. Methods: 30 subjects between the age of 18-25 were selected based on convenience sampling. A cross-sectional study was conducted. Gait Speed was analyzed by GAITRite and Movement Time of Upper Limb tasks by Video recording and time analysis. Result: The Shapiro-Wilk test affirmed the normal distribution of the data. Utilizing Pearson’s correlation coefficient, we observed a moderate correlation (r = -0.533) with a statistically significant p-value of 0.001 between the Average Gait Speed and Average Movement Time of upper limb tasks in the younger adult population. Conclusion: The average gait speed of an individual exhibits a moderate correlation with the movement time required for upper limb tasks. Subsequent research within this realm could explore the inclusion of older adults as subjects, considering that interventions targeting either outcome could prove particularly advantageous for this demographic Implications: Exploring the interplay between gait speed and movement time in the upper limbs among individuals without movement disorders is essential for gaining insights into how these factors may vary in people affected by such conditions.

Genome-wide association study on coordination and agility in 461 Chinese Han males

PurposeThere is growing evidence that genetic factors can influence human athletic performance. In many sports performances, excellent coordination and agility are the keys to mastery. However, few studies have been devoted to identifying genetic influences on athletic performance. Methods: We generated a derived measure of coordination and agility from the data of hexagonal jumps and T-runs and conducted genome-wide association and meta-analysis studies focused on coordination and agility. Results: The phenotypic correlation and genetic covariance analysis indicated that hexagonal jumps and T-runs were possibly influenced by the same set of genetic factors (R = 0.27, genetic covariance = 0.59). Meta-analysis identified rs117047321 genome-wide significant association (N = 143, P < 10E-5) with coordination and agility, and this association was replicated in the replication group (N = 318, P < 0.05). The CG genotype samples of this single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) required a longer average movement time than the CC genotype samples, and the CG genotype only exists in Asia, which may belong to the East Asia-specific variation. This SNP is located on MYO5B, which is highly expressed in tissues such as the brain, heart, and muscle, suggesting that this locus might be a genetic factor related to human energy metabolism. Conclusion: Our study indicated that genetic factors can affect the athletic performance of coordination and agility. These findings may provide valuable insights for using genetic factors to evaluate sports characteristics.

Visual feedback and age affect upper limb reaching accuracy and kinematics in immersive virtual reality among healthy adults.

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the effect of visual feedback, age and movement repetition on the upper limb (UL) accuracy and kinematics during a reaching task in immersive virtual reality (VR). Fifty-one healthy participants were asked to perform 25 trials of a reaching task in immersive VR with and without visual feedback of their hand. They were instructed to place, as accurately and as fast as possible, a controller held in their non-dominant hand in the centre of a virtual red cube of 3 cm side length. For each trial, the end-point error (distance between the tip of the controller and the centre of the cube), a coefficient of linearity (CL), the movement time (MT), and the spectral arc length of the velocity signal (SPARC), which is a movement smoothness index, were calculated. Multivariate analyses of variance were conducted to assess the influence of visual feedback, age and trial repetition on the average end-point error, SPARC, CL and MT, and their time course throughout the 25 trials. Providing visual feedback of the hand reduced average end-point error ( P < 0.001) and MT ( P = 0.044), improved SPARC ( P < 0.001) but did not affect CL ( P = 0.07). Younger participants obtained a lower mean end-point error ( P = 0.037), a higher SPARC ( P = 0.021) and CL ( P = 0.013). MT was not affected by age ( P = 0.671). Trial repetition increased SPARC ( P < 0.001) and CL ( P < 0.001), and reduced MT ( P = 0.001) but did not affect end-point error ( P = 0.608). In conclusion, the results of this study demonstrated that providing visual feedback of the hand and being younger improves UL accuracy and movement smoothness in immersive VR. UL kinematics but not accuracy can be improved with more trial repetitions. These findings could guide the future development of protocols in clinical rehabilitation and research.

Effects of postural instability on the coordination between posture and arm reaching

Reaching from standing requires adjustments of hand movement and posture, which are assured by redundant kinematic degrees of freedom. However, the increased demand for postural adjustments may interfere with the stability of reaching. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of postural instability on the use of kinematic redundancy to stabilize the finger and center-of-mass trajectories during reaching from standing in healthy adults. Sixteen healthy young adults performed reaching movements from standing with and without postural instability induced by small base-of-support. The three-dimensional positions of 48 markers were recorded at 100 Hz. The uncontrolled manifold (UCM) analysis was performed separately with the finger and center-of-mass positions being the performance variables, and joint angles being the elemental variables. ΔV, the normalized difference between the variance in joint angle that does not affect task performance (VUCM) and the variance that does affect task performance (VORT), was calculated separately for finger (ΔVEP) and center-of-mass (ΔVCOM) positions, and was compared between stable and unstable base-of-support conditions. ΔVEP decreased after movement onset and reached its minimum value at around 30–50% of the normalized movement time, and increased until movement offset, while ΔVCOM remained stable. At 60%–100% normalized movement time, ΔVEP was significantly reduced in the unstable base-of-support, compared to the stable base-of-support condition. ΔVCOM remained similar between the two conditions. At movement offset, ΔVEP was significantly reduced in the unstable base-of-support, compared to the stable base-of-support condition, and was associated with a substantial increase in VORT. Postural instability might reduce the ability to use kinematic redundancy to stabilize the reaching movement. The central nervous system may prioritize the maintenance of postural stability over focal movement when postural stability is challenged.

Effects of Human and Robot Feedback on Shaping Human Movement Behaviors during Reaching Tasks

This was the first of a series of experiments to investigate whether adults respond to a robot’s feedback as effectively as to a human’s during a virtual-reality game. Twenty adults volunteered to pop bubbles in 7 virtual-reality games, including 2 in baseline, 3 in acquisition, and 2 in extinction. Participants were randomized to receive feedback from a robot or a human during acquisition. The 80% of the average movement time at baseline was used as the target time to determine the feedback content. Feedback was the same except for the agent (robot or human). Results indicated adults responding to a robot’s feedback to shape their reaching during acquisition and extinction had faster reaching than baseline; however, their patterns were jerkier, less straight, and slower than participants’ receiving a human’s feedback. This study shows the potential to use robots as the feedback provider, though participants performed slightly better with human feedback.

Countermovement Jump Force-Time Curve Analysis between Strength-Matched Male and Female Soccer Players.

The purpose of this study was to compare countermovement jump force–time measures between strength-matched male and female soccer players. Males (n = 11) and females (n = 11) were strength-matched via isometric mid-thigh pull testing, whereby peak force values were normalised to body mass. Subjects performed three maximal-effort countermovement jumps (CMJs) on a force platform from which a range of kinetic and kinematic variables were calculated via forward dynamics. Thereafter, differences in gross measures were examined via independent t-tests, while differences in force–, power–, velocity–, and displacement–time curves throughout the entire CMJ were analysed using statistical parametric mapping (SPM). Jump height, reactive strength index modified, propulsion mean force, propulsion impulse, and propulsion mean velocity were all greater for males (d = 1.50 to 3.07). Relative force– and velocity–time curves were greater for males at 86–93% (latter half of the concentric phase) and 85–100% (latter half of the concentric phase) of normalized movement time, respectively. Time to take-off, braking phase time, braking mean velocity and impulse, propulsion phase time and centre of mass displacement were similar between males and females (d = −0.23 to 0.97). This research demonstrates the strength of SPM to identify changes between entire force-time curves. Continued development and the use of SPM analysis could present the opportunity for a refined comparison of strength-matched male and female CMJ performance with the analysis of entire force–time curves.

Effect of Transumbilical Single-Port Laparoscopic-Assisted Duhamel Operation on Serum CRP and IL-6 Levels in Children with Hirschsprung's Disease.

Objective To explore the clinical intervention effect of transumbilical single-port laparoscopic-assisted Duhamel operation on children with Hirschsprung's disease (HD) and to analyze the effect of treatment on children with serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) effects. Methods Retrospectively select 80 children with HD who underwent surgery in our hospital from May 2017 to May 2020 as the research subjects and they are classified as group A according to the difference of the children's surgical procedures (receiving transumbilical single-port laparoscopic-assisted Duhamel surgery, 40 cases) and group B (receiving conventional laparoscopic surgery, 40 cases), compare the perioperative period (operating time, intraoperative blood loss, surgical posthospitalization, and postoperative gastrointestinal function recovery time), early postoperative complications (perianal dermatitis, urinary retention, enterocolitis, and anastomotic leakage), and late postoperative complications (anastomotic stenosis, dirty stool, recurrence of constipation, and enterocolitis), compare the differences in the levels of CRP and IL-6 between the two groups of children before and after the operation, and conduct a 1-year follow-up of the two groups of children to compare the long-term defecation status. Results The surgical time of children in group A, postoperative hospitalization time, and postoperative gastrointestinal function recovery time were significantly shorter than those of group B, and the differences between groups were statistically significant (P < 0.05). A group of patients: the total incidence of postearly complications was 5.00% lower than 22.50% (P < 0.05) in group B (P < 0.05), and the total incidence of previous complications after group A of patients was 10.00% lower than 27.50% of group B (P < 0.05). The two groups of serum CRP and IL-6 in two groups were not statistically significant (P > 0.05), and the serum CRP and IL-6 levels of children in group A after surgery were 3 days. It is obviously lower than those in group B, and the differences between groups have statistical significance (P < 0.05). At 1 month after surgery, the average bowel movement time in group A is significantly lower than those of group B (P < 0.05); during the 1–12 months, the difference between the defecation frequency group of the group A and group B did not have statistically significance (P > 0.05). Conclusion Transumbilical single-port laparoscopic assistant Duhamel operation of HD has a good intervention effect, compared to traditional laparoscopic surgery, the operation time, postoperative hospitalization time, and postoperative gastrointestinal function recovery time, and also help to reduce postoperative near-long complications The incidence improves the stress reactions and long-term defecation functions in children.

Re-evaluation of neurobehavioural toxicity of clothianidin using statistical methods for ordered alternatives assuming dose-response effect.

Neurobehavioural toxicity of clothianidin in previous studies was re-evaluated using statistical methods for ordered alternatives assuming a dose-response effect. In a maternal exposure study, clothianidin was added into the diet to provide levels of 0% (control), 0.002%, 0.006% and 0.018% during the gestation and lactation periods in mice. In exploratory behaviour of male offspring in the F1 generation, average speed increased significantly in a dose-related manner in the Jonckheere test. Total distance lengthened in the high-dose group and average speed increased in the high-dose group in the Shirley-Williams test. In a two-generation toxicity study, clothianidin was added in the diet to provide levels of 0% (control), 0.003%, 0.006% and 0.012% from 5 weeks of age of the F0 generation to 11 weeks of age of the F1 generation in mice. The exploratory behaviour of adult males in the F0 generation, the average time of movement, and the number of rearing and rearing time increased significantly in a dose-related manner in the Jonckheere test. The average speed increased in the middle- and high-dose groups, number of rearing increased in the high-dose group and rearing time lengthened in middle- and high-dose groups in the Shirley-Williams test. These results suggest that the use of the appropriate statistical methods adjusted to the objectives of the study and the characteristics of the data could provide more definite conclusions.

The Correlation Between Reach and Grasp Kinematic Measures and Clinical Measures of Manual Dexterity in Patients With Parkinson Disease

Background and Objectives: To investigate the correlation between reach and grasp kinematic measures and clinical measures of gross and fine manual dexterity in patients with idiopathic Parkinson Disease (PD). Methods: Sixty patients (44 men, 16 women) with idiopathic PD (Mean±SD of age: 59.85±11.89 years) were recruited in this non-experimental cross-sectional study using a non-probability sampling method. Their gross and fine manual dexterity were assessed using the Box and Block Test (BBT) and Nine Hole Peg Test (NHPT), respectively. Also, reach and grasp kinematic measures (including normalized movement time, peak velocity, Maximum Grip Aperture [MGA], and percentage of movement time in which MGA occurred [PMGA]) were measured in the more affected hand. Results: The results showed a significant and moderate correlation between reach kinematic measures (i.e. normalized movement time and peak velocity) and both gross and fine manual dexterity assessed by BBT (P=0.000) and NHPT (P=0.000), respectively. However, there was not a significant correlation between grasp kinematic measures (i.e. MGA and PMGA) and gross manual dexterity measured by BBT (P&gt;0.05) as well as fine manual dexterity assessed by NHPT (P&gt;0.05). Conclusion: This study showed no to moderate correlation between reach and grasp kinematic measures and clinical measures of gross and fine manual dexterity in patients with PD, supporting the significance of multi-level evaluation using both clinical and kinematic measures in the evaluation of upper limb function in patients with PD.

0316 Emotion Regulation During Sleep Deprivation and Repeated Physiological Stress: Implications for Motor Skill Learning and Production

Abstract Introduction The ability to perform learned motor procedures under stress is a critical skill for many high-risk occupations. Explicit motor skills require top-down cognitive control, which both sleep loss and stress have been found to produce significant degradations, whereas implicit skills rely less on cognitive control and are more resilient to physiological stress. We investigated whether differences in emotion regulation attenuated the effects of sleep deprivation (SD) and acute stress on discrete motor learning. Methods 45 adults (21 F; 22 ± 3.4 years) participated in 28-hours of in-lab SD. Participants completed repeated batteries that included the Maastricht Acute Stress Test (MAST) Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS), Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT), and Discrete Sequence Production Task (DSP). Stress response was quantified by salivary cortisol. We quantified DSP motor performance by total accurate sequences, and average movement time on accurate trials. Ability emotional intelligence (EI) was measured with the MSCEIT, while trait EI was measured with the Bar-On EQI. The CD-RISC was included as a measure of resilience. Results Using linear mixed effects models of motor performance indices, we found subjective, trait-based emotional intelligence (EQI) to be associated with worse motor performance over time, and objective, ability-based emotional intelligence (MSCEIT) to be associated with greater movement speed. We further found that greater psychological resilience (CD-RISC) but not emotional intelligence was predictive of stronger and less variable chunking structures during SD. Conclusion Emotional intelligence can influence motor learning under stressful SD, whereas psychological resilience can safeguard learning. Future work should further investigate how trait and ability metrics of EI have opposing effects on responses to stress under SD. Work in this direction could serve to identify difference factors that bolster motor skill production in operational environments where stress and SD are unavoidable. Support US Army Medical Research and Development Command: W81XWH-17-C-0088

Characteristics of the swallowing of cortical stroke survivors with dysphagia and cognitive impairment

Objective To identify the pathophysiological characteristics of cortical stroke survivors′ swallowing. Methods Sixty cortical stroke survivors with dysphagia and cognitive impairment were enrolled into the observation group, while another 16 with dysphagia but without cognitive impairment formed the unimpaired control group and 16 healthy counterparts were selected for a normal control group. Each subject was recorded videofluoroscopically while swallowing 5ml of a liquid of medium consistency. The occurrence of refusing to eat, mouth opening difficulty, incomplete oral closure, residue in the oral cavity, residue in the pharyngeal cavity, leakage and aspiration were observed. Each subject′s swallowing time and kinematic parameters were analyzed from the fluoroscopic videos. Results The incidence of refusing to eat (37.5%) and/or incomplete mouth closure (68.75%) were significantly higher in the observation group than in the other two groups. The incidence of difficulty in opening the mouth (37.5%), residue in the oral cavity (81.25%), residue in the pharyngeal cavity (56.25%), leakage (56.25%) and aspiration (50%) of the observation group were significantly higher in the observation group than among the normal controls, but were not significantly different from those incidences among the group without cognitive impairment. The average oral transit time and soft palate elevation time of the observation group were significantly longer than those of the other two groups. The observation group′s average hyoid movement time was significantly longer than that of the normal control group, but not significantly different from that of the group without cognitive impairment. There were no significant differences among the groups in average upper esophageal sphincter opening time, larynx closure time or the kinematic parameters. Conclusions Stroke survivors with dysphagia and cognitive impairment present dysphagia characteristic of oral phase swallowing difficulties. Key words: Stroke; Cognitive impairment; Dysphagia; Videofluoroscopy; Swallowing

Combined effects of maternal exposure to fungicides on behavioral development in F1 -generation mice: 1. Several dose study of both imazalil and thiabendazole.

Few published studies are reported for neurobehavioral toxicity of combined exposure to fungicides in mammals. This study was aimed to evaluate reproductive and neurobehavioral effects of maternal exposure to combined fungicides in mice. Imazalil (IMZ) and thiabendazole (TBZ) were given in the diet to provide levels of 0/0% (control), 0.0015/0.006% (IMZ/TBZ), 0.006/0.018%, and 0.024/0.054% during the gestation and lactation periods. Selected reproductive and neurobehavioral parameters were measured in the F1 generation. No adverse effect of IMZ/TBZ was observed in litter size, litter weight, or sex ratio at birth. The average body weight of male and female offspring was increased significantly in treatment groups during the lactation period. With respect to behavioral developmental parameters, the swimming head angle on PND 7 of male offspring was significantly accelerated in the treatment groups. After weaning, the movement time of exploratory behavior shortened in a significant dose-related manner in adult males of the F1 generation. In adult females, the rearing time of exploratory behavior lengthened in a significant dose-related manner in the F1 generation. Spontaneous behavior examination indicated that longitudinal patterns of each of the total distance and number of rearing were different during the control and treatment groups in the F1 -generation females. Parallel width of the control and treatment groups was significantly different in the average time of movement and rearing in the F1 -generation females. The high-dose level of IMZ/TBZ in the present study produced several adverse effects in neurobehavioral parameters after weaning without concurrent chemical administration in mice.

Does Concussion Affect Perception-Action Coupling Behavior? Action Boundary Perception as a Biomarker for Concussion.

After a concussion, athletes may be at increased risk of musculoskeletal injuries. Altered perception of action boundaries (ABP), or the limits of one's action capabilities, is one possible mechanism for this increase in injury risk after concussion. To evaluate differences in symptoms, neurocognitive, vestibular/oculomotor, and action boundary function between subjects with no concussion history (NoHx) and concussion history (ConcHX). Cross-sectional study. Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh. ConcHx (n = 22; age: 21.8 ± 3.0 years, height: 174.0 ± 8.3 cm, and mass: 77.8 ± 14.8 kg) and NoHx athletes (n = 24; age: 21.6 ± 2.0 years, height: 176.0 ± 10.0 cm, and mass: 72.0 ± 15.3 kg). Immediate Postconcussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) and Post-Concussion Symptom Scale (PCSS), Vestibular-Ocular Motor Screening (VOMS) tool, and the Perception-Action Coupling Task (PACT). The PACT measures the accuracy of ABP. Neurocognitive domain scores, PCSS, VOMS subdomain symptom gain, ABP accuracy, and actualization. ConcHx reported 2.7 ± 1.5 previous concussions occurring on average 263.8 ± 228.9 days prior. ConcHx was higher on several VOMS items including vertical/horizontal saccades (P = 0.001; P = 0.05), vertical/horizontal vestibular-ocular reflex (P < 0.001; P = 0.04), and visual motion sensitivity (P < 0.001). Average PACT movement time (P = 0.01) and reaction time (P = 0.01) were longer in ConcHx. These findings provide preliminary support for impaired vestibular/oculomotor function and ABP in ConcHx compared with NoHx. The current results may enhance our understanding of the mechanisms for increased musculoskeletal injury risk after concussion.

An Experimental Study of Ascent and Descent Movement of People on Long Stair with High Occupant Density

This paper presents an experimental study of the movements of both ascent and descent in a high occupant density 20-level building in order to exploit the characteristics of occupant movement on long stairwells. The movement processes of the participants are recorded in order to estimate both overall and local movement speeds, as well as flow rate and occupant density in the stairwell. When a merging flow is presented, the average movement time from one floor to the next is 35.8 s ± 15.6 s, and 37.3 s ± 10.6 s for ascent and descent movement, respectively. When a merging flow is not presented, the average movement time per floor is 15.1 s ± 0.8 s and 11.9 s ± 0.8 s for the ascent and descent movement. Under congested conditions, the average speeds on long stairwells maintains a relatively constant value of approximately 0.50 m/s ± 0.17 m/s, and 0.61 m/s ± 0.14 m/s for respective ascent and descent movement, while the traveling distance has no obvious impact on speed. Furthermore, the relationship between velocity and density in our observations is in line with linear functions and equations are accordingly proposed.

Voluntary Control of Residual Antagonistic Muscles in Transtibial Amputees: Feedforward Ballistic Contractions and Implications for Direct Neural Control of Powered Lower Limb Prostheses.

Discrete, rapid (i.e., ballistic like) muscle activation patterns have been observed in ankle muscles (i.e., plantar flexors and dorsiflexors) of able-bodied individuals during voluntary posture control. This observation motivated us to investigate whether transtibial amputees are capable of generating such a ballistic-like activation pattern accurately using their residual ankle muscles in order to assess whether the volitional postural control of a powered ankle prosthesis using proportional myoelectric control via residual muscles could be feasible. In this paper, we asked ten transtibial amputees to generate ballistic-like activation patterns using their residual lateral gastrocnemius and residual tibialis anterior to control a computer cursor via proportional myoelectric control to hit targets positioned at 20% and 40% of maximum voluntary contraction of the corresponding residual muscle. During practice conditions, we asked amputees to hit a single target repeatedly. During testing conditions, we asked amputees to hit a random sequence of targets. We compared movement time to target and end-point accuracy. We also examined motor recruitment synchronization via time-frequency representations of residual muscle activation. The result showed that median end-point error ranged from -0.6% to 1% maximum voluntary contraction across subjects during practice, which was significantly lower compared to testing ( ). Average movement time for all amputees was 242 ms during practice and 272 ms during testing. Motor recruitment synchronization varied across subjects, and amputees with the highest synchronization achieved the fastest movement times. End-point accuracy was independent of movement time. Results suggest that it is feasible for transtibial amputees to generate ballistic control signals using their residual muscles. Future work on volitional control of powered power ankle prostheses might consider anticipatory postural control based on ballistic-like residual muscle activation patterns and direct continuous proportional myoelectric control.

Fitts' Law is Applicable to Trunk Coordination Measurements in a Sitting Position

ABSTRACTTrunk coordination is essential for many activities of daily living in wheelchair users. This study investigated whether Fitts' law is applicable to trunk movements in a sitting position. Fourteen healthy adults performed two series of 24 tasks of trunk flexion–extension movements in a sitting position. The results showed significant linear relationships between average group movement time (MT) and index of difficulty (ID) over all tasks (r2 = 0.92) and within target distances (0.94 < r2 < 1.00). Target distance affected intercept and slope (P < 0.001). Hence, Fitts' law is applicable to the studied trunk movements in a sitting position, indicating these trunk movements tasks could serve as a basis for qualitative trunk coordination tests. Transferability of these conclusions to wheelchair users, and optimal test design should be further investigated.

Effect of feedback from a socially interactive humanoid robot on reaching kinematics in children with and without cerebral palsy: A pilot study

ABSTRACTPurpose: To examine whether children with or without cerebral palsy (CP) would follow a humanoid robot’s (i.e., Darwin) feedback to move their arm faster when playing virtual reality (VR) games. Methods: Seven children with mild CP and 10 able-bodied children participated. Real-time reaching was evaluated by playing the Super Pop VRTM system, including 2-game baseline, 3-game acquisition, and another 2-game extinction. During acquisition, Darwin provided verbal feedback to direct the child to reach a kinematically defined target goal (i.e., 80% of average movement time in baseline). Outcome variables included the percentage of successful reaches (“% successful reaches”), movement time (MT), average speed, path, and number of movement units. Results: All games during acquisition and extinction had larger “%successful reaches,” faster speeds, and faster MTs than the 2 games during baseline (p < .05). Conclusion: Children with and without CP could follow the robot’s feedback for changing their reaching kinematics when playing VR games.

Reproductive and Neurobehavioral Effects of Ethiprole Administered to Mice in the Diet.

Few studies were found for neurobehavioral toxicity of the phenylpyrazole insecticide ethiprole in mammals. This study was designed to evaluate the reproductive and neurobehavioral effects of ethiprole exposure in mice. Ethiprole was given in the diet to provide levels of 0 (control), 0.0003, 0.0009, and 0.0027% from 5 weeks of age of the F0 generation to 11 weeks of age of the F1 generation in mice. Selected reproductive and neurobehavioral parameters were measured. Movement time increased with a significant dose-related trend, and frequencies of mice with urination increased in the high-dose group of adult males in the F0 generation. The average body weight of male and female offspring increased significantly in treatment groups at postnatal days (PNDs) 7, 14, and 21. Surface righting on PND 7 of male offspring was accelerated in a significant dose-related trend. In female offspring, olfactory orientation on PND 14 was accelerated significantly on the route of higher-dose groups, and time of all treatment groups. Total distance, movement time, average speed, and average time of movement significantly decreased, and frequencies of mice with urination increased in a significant dose-related trend in male offspring in the F1 generation. Longitudinal patterns of spontaneous behavior differed in the number of horizontal activities, movement time, and average speed in treatment groups in males. The number of horizontal activities of females decreased in a significant dose-related trend through 120 min. The dose levels of ethiprole in the present study produced several adverse effects in neurobehavioral parameters in mice. Birth Defects Research 109:1568-1585, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.