Background and Objective: Pre-pandemic, various healthcare settings were not used to seeing patients virtually. The unprecedented need to adopt virtual care during the COVID-19 pandemic may have caught physical therapists (PTs) unready for it. This study aimed to determine the telerehabilitation knowledge, attitude, and practice of PTs in the Philippines during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the association between demographic and study outcome variables. Methods: This is an analytical cross-sectional study among members of the Philippine Physical Therapy Association, Inc. (PPTA) practicing in the Philippines. Purposive sampling (total enumeration) was employed. All PPTA members were invited to the study through e-mail and official social media group chats. A self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain data on telerehabilitation knowledge (through test questions on various theoretical aspects), attitude, and practice. Results: The questionnaire items had a content validity index of >0.80. The study yielded a 40% response rate. Most respondents were practicing clinicians in urban-based, private rehabilitation centers. Approximately half had average telerehabilitation knowledge, while the majority had agreeable telerehabilitation attitudes across different constructs. Among the respondents, 15.9% used telerehabilitation pre-pandemic, while 64.8% used it during the pandemic. Hybrid (synchronous and asynchronous) telerehabilitation sessions usually lasted one hour per patient, mostly using Facebook Messenger. Conclusion Telerehabilitation was not widely practiced locally pre-pandemic, which may explain their average telerehabilitation knowledge. The positive telerehabilitation attitudes may represent a small group of PTs favoring telerehabilitation, while information from the larger population remains unknown. Early adopters of telerehabilitation may help introduce virtual care to colleagues and guide them in developing relevant knowledge and skills amid and beyond the enduring COVID-19 crisis.
COVID-19 ; Developing Countries ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Telerehabilitation ; Telemedicine

Ankle arthritis affects approximately 1% of the adult population worldwide and represents a serious global disease burden. However, compared with hip arthritis and knee arthritis, the clinical understanding and treatment of ankle arthritis are still in their infancy. For end-stage ankle arthritis, ankle arthrodesis was considered as the "gold standard" in the past. However, ankle arthrodesis will result in loss of joint mobility, altered gait, limited daily activities, and accelerated degeneration of adjacent joints. Therefore, how to preserve the range of motion of the ankle joint while relieving pain is the key to the treatment of ankle arthritis. Currently, the surgical treatment of ankle arthritis includes arthroscopic debridement, periarticular osteotomies, osteochondral transplantation, ankle distraction arthroplasty, ankle arthrodesis, and total ankle arthroplasty. The choice of treatment should be individualized and based on various factors such as the patient's symptoms, signs, imaging performance, complaints, and financial situation. However, there are no guidelines that give clear treatment recommendations. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct extensive and in-depth discussions on the diagnosis and treatment of ankle arthritis.
Adult ; Humans ; Ankle/surgery* ; Arthritis/surgery* ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Ankle ; Ankle Joint/surgery* ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Arthrodesis/methods* ; Treatment Outcome

Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS), as an overused injury of the lower extremities, has developed into a common cause of lateral knee pain. At present, the treatment of ITBS includes drug therapy, muscle strength training, physical therapy, and surgical treatment. Among these methods, physical therapy, drug therapy, and surgical treatment can only alleviate the symptoms of patients. As a safe and effective treatment, lower limb muscle strength training can improve patients' muscle strength, correct abnormal gait, and reduce the recurrence rate of the disease by paying attention to the dynamic changes of patients' recovery process. At present, the pathogenesis of ITBS remains unclear, and the treatment methods are not unified. It is necessary to further study the biomechanical factors related to the lower extremities and develop more scientific and comprehensive muscle strength training methods.
Humans ; Resistance Training ; Running/physiology* ; Iliotibial Band Syndrome/diagnosis* ; Lower Extremity ; Physical Therapy Modalities/adverse effects* ; Knee Joint ; Muscle Strength/physiology* ; Muscles/injuries* ; Biomechanical Phenomena

INTRODUCTION: Postoperative day 1 (POD 1) mobilisation is a key clinical indicator for the fragility hip fracture surgery population. This study aimed to evaluate the current trends of POD 1 mobilisation at our institution and to review the relationships between early mobilisation and outcomes of early functional recovery, length of stay (LOS) and discharge destination. METHODS: In this preliminary observational study, data pertaining to demographics, premorbid function, health status, injury and surgical factors, POD 1 mobilisation status and clinical outcomes of interest were retrieved from eligible patients. Patients who attained POD 1 ambulation formed the early ambulation (EA) group, while the remaining patients formed the delayed ambulation (DA) group. Data were analysed for any significant difference between the groups. RESULTS: One hundred and fifteen patients were included in the analysis. The rate of patients achieving at least sitting out of bed on POD 1 was 80.0% (n=92), which was comparable to the data available from international hip fracture audit databases. There were 55 (47.8%) patients in the EA group and 60 (52.5%) patients in the DA group. The EA group was approximately nine times more likely to achieve independence in ambulation at discharge compared to the DA group (adjusted odds ratio 9.20, 95% confidence interval 1.50-56.45; P = 0.016). There were observed trends of shorter LOS and more proportion of home discharge in the EA group compared to the DA group (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION This is the first local study to offer benchmark of the POD 1 mobilisation status for this population. Patients who attained POD 1 ambulation had better early functional recovery.
Humans ; Early Ambulation ; Patient Discharge ; Tertiary Care Centers ; Hip Fractures/surgery* ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Length of Stay

At present, the upper limb function of stroke patients is often assessed clinically using a scale method, but this method has problems such as time-consuming, poor consistency of assessment results, and high participation of rehabilitation physicians. To overcome the shortcomings of the scale method, intelligent upper limb function assessment systems combining sensors and machine learning algorithms have become one of the hot research topics in recent years. Firstly, the commonly used clinical upper limb functional assessment methods are analyzed and summarized. Then the researches on intelligent assessment systems in recent years are reviewed, focusing on the technologies used in the data acquisition and data processing parts of intelligent assessment systems and their advantages and disadvantages. Lastly, the current challenges and future development directions of intelligent assessment systems are discussed. This review is hoped to provide valuable reference information for researchers in related fields.
Algorithms ; Humans ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Stroke/diagnosis* ; Stroke Rehabilitation ; Upper Extremity

INTRODUCTION: Chest physiotherapy (CPT) may benefit children aged below five years who suffer from lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). However, its effects depend on the technique used. This study aimed to determine whether mechanical CPT using the LEGA-Kid® mechanical percussion device is superior to manual CPT in children with LRTI. METHODS: Children aged five months to five years who were admitted and referred for CPT from January to April 2017 were randomised to either manual CPT or mechanical CPT with LEGA-Kid. Outcomes measured before intervention and two hours after intervention were respiratory rate (RR), oxygen saturation and modified Respiratory Distress Assessment Instrument (mRDAI) score. RESULTS: All 30 enrolled patients showed significant reduction in post-intervention RR and mRDAI scores. There was an 8% reduction in RR for the manual CPT group (p = 0.002) and a 16.5% reduction in the mechanical CPT group (p = 0.0001), with a significantly greater reduction in the latter (p = 0.024). mRDAI scores decreased by 2.96 in the manual group (p = 0.0001) and 3.62 in the mechanical group (p = 0.002), with no significant difference between the groups. There was no significant improvement in oxygen saturation, and no adverse events were observed after CPT. CONCLUSION Children receiving both manual and mechanical CPT showed improvements in respiratory distress symptoms, with no adverse effects. A combined strategy of nebulised hypertonic saline followed by CPT for LRTI removes airway secretions and results in improvements in moderately severe respiratory distress. The LEGA-Kid mechanical CPT method is superior to manual CPT in reducing the RR.
Child ; Humans ; Percussion/methods* ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome ; Respiratory Therapy/methods* ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; Single-Blind Method

The present study explored the drying effect of new spiral vibration drying technology on Chinese medicinal pills with Liuwei Dihuang Pills, Zhuanggu Guanjie Pills, and Muxiang Shunqi Pills as model drugs. With the drying uniformity, drying time, energy consumption, pill split, dissolution time, and change of index components as evaluation indicators, the drying effect of spiral vibration drying technology on model drugs was evaluated and compared with traditional drying methods, such as hot air drying and vacuum drying in the oven. The dynamic changes of moisture in Liuwei Dihuang Pills with different drying time were investigated. Compared with the traditional drying methods in the oven(hot air drying and vacuum drying) at 80 ℃, the spiral vibration drying only took 80 min, shortened by 80%, with 10%-13% energy consumed. The results showed that the moisture of Liuwei Dihuang Pills was negatively related to the drying time. By virtue of multi-layer countercurrent drying and super resonant fluidization techniques, the new spiral vibration drying technology can significantly improve the drying quality of Chinese medicinal pills, improve the drying efficiency, and enhance the manufacturing capacity of Chinese medicinal pills. This study is expected to provide references for the innovation and development of new drying technology of Chinese medicinal pills.
China ; Desiccation ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Technology ; Vibration

This paper provides context and perspective on the development of research in occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology in the Philippines, and the value of research in rehabilitation sciences in generating knowledge that could contribute to evidence-informed decisions that optimize health and wellbeing of individuals. A brief historical background of the evolution of rehabilitation research and practice is provided, both globally and within the Filipino context. Currently, a research-practice gap exists and there is a need to evaluate the efficacy of the traditional approaches still being used in contemporary practice. The local professional organizations representing these disciplines need to be more overt in supporting the use of evidence to guide treatment. This article discusses the challenges faced by researchers that hinder the advancement of scholarly work in the disciplines. Each of the professions must continue to advocate for evidence-based practice and encourage the growth of research in their respective fields.
Occupational Therapy ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Speech-Language Pathology ; Research

Gesture imitation is a common rehabilitation strategy in limb rehabilitation training. In traditional rehabilitation training, patients need to complete training actions under the guidance of rehabilitation physicians. However, due to the limited resources of the hospital, it cannot meet the training and guidance needs of all patients. In this paper, we proposed a following control method based on Kinect and NAO robot for the gesture imitation task in rehabilitation training. The method realized the joint angles mapping from Kinect coordination to NAO robot coordination through inverse kinematics algorithm. Aiming at the deflection angle estimation problem of the elbow joint, a virtual space plane was constructed and realized the accurate estimation of deflection angle. Finally, a comparative experiment for deflection angle of the elbow joint angle was conducted. The experimental results showed that the root mean square error of the angle estimation value of this method in right elbow transverse deflection and vertical deflection directions was 2.734° and 2.159°, respectively. It demonstrates that the method can follow the human movement in real time and stably using the NAO robot to show the rehabilitation training program for patients.
Humans ; Upper Extremity ; Robotics/methods* ; Stroke Rehabilitation/methods* ; Elbow Joint ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; Biomechanical Phenomena

Sensorimotor disorder can be easily caused by stroke, and there are many targeted movement rehabilitation therapies. With the development of rehabilitation robot technology, robot-assisted therapy combined with mechanical perturbations has become a more effective motor rehabilitation therapy. In this paper, the definition of mechanical perturbation and its physiological mechanism in stroke rehabilitation are introduced, the research progress on mechanical perturbation in the field of stroke rehabilitation therapy is mainly discussed, the application of mechanical perturbation in motor control, postural response and sensory evaluation of stroke rehabilitation is summarized, and the future development direction of mechanical perturbation rehabilitation therapy is also prospected.
Humans ; Stroke Rehabilitation ; Robotics ; Stroke ; Physical Therapy Modalities