Archives of Allied Health Sciences

Effects of 4-week balance training program on executive function in preschool children: A randomized controlled trial

2025-05-17T09:51:17+07:00

Executive function delays have been steadily increasing in early childhood, influencing both academic achievement and life success. Effective interventions to promote executive function development are therefore urgently needed. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a four-week balance training program on executive function in 66 preschool children aged 4–6 years. Participants were randomly assigned to either a balance training group or a control group. The control group continued with the standard preschool curriculum, while the balance training group participated in four structured balance exercises, including double-leg stance, single-leg stance, balance path, and forward hopping on marking sheets for 45 minutes per day, three days per week, over four weeks. Executive function, including inhibition, shifting, emotional control, working memory, and planning, was assessed by teachers using the Executive Function Development Assessment at three time points: before training, after the four-week program, and at an eight-week follow-up. Data were analyzed using the Friedman test and the Mann–Whitney U test, with statistical significance set at p-value < 0.05. Results revealed significant improvements in all executive function domains in both groups after training. Consistent with the hypothesis, the balance training group showed greater gains in emotional control than the control group following four weeks of training. At the eight-week follow-up, the balance training group demonstrated significantly higher levels of emotional control (p-value = 0.036), working memory (p-value = 0.016), and planning (p-value = 0.039) compared to the control group. Improvements in inhibition, emotional control, and planning were particularly pronounced among children in the balance training group. In conclusion, both the standard preschool curriculum and balance training for at least four weeks can enhance executive function development in preschool children. However, the findings suggest that a structured balance exercise program may be more effective in promoting executive function development than the standard curriculum alone.

Stone culturing: a more effective approach to diagnosing bacterial infections in kidney stone formers

2025-06-30T08:06:39+07:00

According to the bacteria found in stone niduses, these bacteria may be responsible for lithogenesis. Therefore, we considered culturing stone niduses (SN) as the gold standard for comparing bacterial culture results from stone peripheries (SP), renal pelvic urine (RPU), and midstream urine (MSU), including an evaluation of performance. Data from 36 kidney stone formers were collected, including demographics, imaging diagnostics, urinalysis, and preoperative midstream urine culture. The samples of SN, SP, and RPU were cultured to identify microorganisms. SN were also analyzed for their chemical composition. Diagnostic testing, including sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (LR+), negative likelihood ratio (LR-), positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and area under the curve (AUC) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), was performed. The results showed that 16 (44.44%) SN, 17 (47.22%) SP, 12 (33.33%) RPU, and 18 (50.00%) MSU were positive for bacterial culture. For the performance testing that compares SN and the other three specimens, the sensitivity, LR+, PPV, NPV, and AUC of SP culture (sensitivity = 100%, LR+ = 20.00, PPV = 94.10%, NPV = 100%, AUC = 0.975) demonstrated a high level, exceeding that of RPU and MSU cultures. The level of agreement between SN and SP cultures was almost perfect (0.94). Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Proteus mirabilis were the most commonly isolated bacteria from stone and urine cultures. Moreover, P. mirabilis and E. coli were the most common bacteria isolated from struvite and calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) stone compositions, respectively. Our data indicate that culturing SN exhibited higher concordance with SP than the urine culture. P. mirabilis and E. coli were the most commonly isolated from infection-induced (i.e., struvite) and non infection-induced (i.e., COM) stones, respectively. Integrating stone and urine cultures into the diagnostic workflow for bacterial infections in KSFs is recommended.

Tactile sensation is needed for challenging walking ability among ambulatory individuals with stroke

2025-04-09T14:36:17+07:00

The improvement of walking ability is a key goal of stroke rehabilitation. The exploration of the contribution of sensorimotor functions to walking ability specifically among ambulatory individuals with stroke may provide data to enhance patient-centered care planning for this population. This study investigated the relationship between the lower extremity (LE) sensorimotor functions and walking ability as measured using the 10-meter walk test (10MWT) among 75 ambulatory individuals with stroke. Participants with stroke who could walk independently with or without a walking device were assessed for their LE sensorimotor functions, and 10MWT while walking at their preferred and fastest speeds. The correlations were analyzed using the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rs). The findings indicated that walking ability of the participants correlated predominantly with LE motor scores (rs = 0.628–0.660; p-value < 0.01), followed by LE proprioception scores (rs = 0.449–0.473, p-value < 0.01), while the LE tactile scores significantly correlated only with the fastest walking speed, and the differences between preferred and fastest speed) (rs = 0.254–0.279, p-value < 0.01). The fastest walking speed is important for community participation, and the ability to voluntarily increase walking speed could indicate the remaining capacity for a community challenge as well as indicate and quantify how well the individuals could modify their walking pattern to varying demands during daily life. The present findings suggest contribution of sensorimotor scores on walking ability of the participants, whereby the tactile sensation is needed for challenging ability. Therefore, apart from motor functions and proprioception, tactile sensation is also required to thoroughly promote walking ability of ambulatory individuals with stroke.

The association between mobility limitations and physical performance measures in community-dwelling elderly: a cross-sectional study

2025-10-12T11:51:28+07:00

Effective management of mobility limitations in older adults requires two key components: early identification of at-risk individuals and the ability to target the most critical underlying physical deficits. While numerous clinical tests for balance and strength exist, there is a lack of clarity on which measure best serves both these screening and prescriptive purposes. This study aimed to (1) describe age-group differences, (2) examine bivariate associations between SPPB and flexibility/balance/strength measures, and (3) identify independent predictors and explained variance via stepwise multiple linear regression with age and sex as covariates. This cross-sectional study included 108 older adults (mean age 71.0 ± 5.0 years; 67 women, 41 men) with mobility limitations (SPPB score ≤ 9). Flexibility was measured with the sit-and-reach test; balance by the functional reach test (FRT), single-leg stance test (SLST), timed up and go test (TUGT), and y-balance test (YBT); and strength by handgrip dynamometry. Pearson correlations identified bivariate associations with SPPB score. Stepwise multiple regression was used to determine which measures were most strongly and independently associated with mobility limitation. Although no significant differences were observed between sexes, SPPB scores were significantly lower among the older age groups (75–84 and ≥85 years) compared with the youngest group (p-value < 0.01). The FRT demonstrated the strongest correlation with SPPB (r = 0.37–0.67, p-value < 0.01). In Model 1, FRT alone accounted for 48.3% of the variance in SPPB (β = 0.695, p-value < 0.01). When age was added in Model 2, the explained variance increased slightly to 49.3% (ΔR² = 0.01; β = 0.143, p-value < 0.05). Functional reach emerged as a strong, independent predictor of mobility limitation, explaining nearly half the variance in SPPB score. Its simplicity and feasibility make it a valuable tool for routine geriatric screening to identify older adults at greatest risk of mobility decline. Age provides a modest but significant contribution. These findings support the incorporation of quick, practical balance assessments (FRT) in both community and clinical practice. The cross-sectional design limits causal inference, and findings may not be applicable to institutionalized populations.

Comparative study on the effects of yoga on soft surface on sleep, strength, flexibility, and balance in senior university students with mild insomnia

2025-10-02T20:33:27+07:00

This study aimed to investigate the influence of yoga exercises performed on soft versus hard surfaces and to compare these effects with those of general exercise on sleep quality and isometric muscle strength, flexibility, and dynamic balance outcomes in senior university students with mild insomnia. An assessor-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted with 13 participants per group aged 18 years and older randomly assigned to practice yoga on a hard surface (YH), a soft surface (YS), or a control group that received a guidebook, in 45-minute sessions, three days a week, for four weeks. Sleep quality, the main outcome, improved markedly from baseline, most notably among those who practiced yoga on a soft surface, with a mean PSQI reduction of 7.11 points (95% CI: 3.81–10.41). In addition, muscle strength and flexibility also showed significant improvements. Thus, yoga, particularly on a soft surface, could effectively enhance sleep quality, muscle strength, and flexibility in senior university students facing sleep problems.