Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C1762617 (weakness)
 37,932 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Complete ulnar collateral ligament tears incurred during the period fall 1977 through spring 1979 were treated under regional anesthesia by a single group of surgeons in an identical fashion as outpatients. Of 123 thumbs repaired, 69 (59%) were available for follow-up examination. There were 34 women and 35 men with an average age of 34.5 years (range, 16-61 years). The follow-up period averaged 31.6 months (range, 16-46 months). Weakness of pinch was described as none or mild in 66 (96%) and significant in only three (4%). Stiffness was described as none or mild in 66 (96%), moderate in two (3%), and severe in one (1%). Pain was described as none or mild in 68 (99%) and moderate in one (1%). Sixty-two patients (90%) preferred outpatient surgery with regional anesthesia whereas only seven (10%) did not. Forty-five (65%) of the 69 patients who required surgery had used traditional poles with straps, suggesting the pole as the causative factor. However, only 20% of noninjured skiers during the 1981-1982 season were using traditional poles with straps, and the total number of complete ulnar collateral ligament repairs did not decrease with the same number of skiers. Therefore, the change in pole design has not decreased the incidence of total ulnar collateral ligament tears. The results of acute surgical repair as an outpatient with regional anesthesia are excellent; 96% of the patients were pleased with the results. If the lesion is overlooked, the results of secondary construction are not nearly as good.
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PMID:Acute surgical repair of the skier's thumb. 381 59

The reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament deficient knee with the patellar tendon is the "gold standard". Dislocation of the patella, rupture of the patellar tendon and fracture of the patella were reported to occur. In this biomechanical investigation on the changes of the patellar tendon following harvesting of a graft, 51 sheep knee underwent destructive testing at t0 (n = 11), 4 weeks p.op. (n = 5), 3 months p.op. (n = 14), 6 months p.op. (n = 15), and 12 months p.op. (n = 6). Harvesting of a graft produces a stiffness and strength of the patellar tendon of 50-70% of normal. There was no significant change of free patellar tendon length up to 12 months p.op. The cross-sectional area is definitely increased (p < 0.05). The tensile stress is always above normal, nevertheless the strength shows a massive decline until 6 months p.op. and does not regain normal strength by one year p.op. Stiffness shows comparable biomechanical pattern like tensile stress. There are time-dependent changes, the structural weakness is compensated by an increase of cross-sectional area. There is no restitution of the patellar tendon ad integrum, the remainder is a defect with scar tissue and alterated biomechanical properties. Revision surgery using the same host patellar tendon cannot be recommended.
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PMID:[Biomechanical studies of change in the patellar tendon after transplant removal]. 810 Oct 30

Spasticity is a disorder of the sensorimotor system characterized by a velocity-dependent increase in muscle tone with exaggerated tendon jerks, resulting from hyperexcitability of the stretch reflex. It is one component of the upper motoneuron syndrome, along with released flexor reflexes, weakness, and loss of dexterity. Spasticity is an important "positive" diagnostic sign of the upper motoneuron syndrome, and when it restricts motion, disability may result. The "negative" signs--weakness and loss of dexterity--invariably alter patient function when they occur. In an upper motoneuron syndrome, the alpha motoneuron pool becomes hyperexcitable at the segmental level. This hyperexcitability is hypothesized to occur through a variety of mechanisms, not all of which have yet been demonstrated in humans. Spasticity caused by spinal cord lesions is often marked by a slow increase in excitation and over-activity of both flexors and extensors with reactions possibly occurring many segments away from the stimulus. Cerebral lesions often cause rapid build-up of excitation with a bias toward involvement of antigravity muscles. Chronic spasticity can lead to changes in the rheologic properties of the involved and neighboring muscles. Stiffness, contracture, atrophy, and fibrosis may interact with pathologic regulatory mechanisms to prevent normal control of limb position and movement. In the clinical exam, it is important to distinguish between the resistance due to spasticity and that due to rheologic changes, because the distinction has therapeutic implications. Diagnostic nerve or motor point blocks and dynamic or multichannel EMG are useful to distinguish the contributions of spasticity and stiffness to the clinical problem.
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PMID:Clinicophysiologic concepts of spasticity and motor dysfunction in adults with an upper motoneuron lesion. 982 79

In this study, based on a rat model of human environmental exposure to cadmium (Cd), it has been examined whether low-level lifetime Cd exposure increases the risk of vertebral osteoporosis and vertebrae fractures in the elderly. For this purpose, the lumbar vertebral bodies (L4 or L3) of control and Cd-exposed (1 mg Cd/l in drinking water for 24 months) female Wistar rats were assigned to densitometric, radiographic, biomechanical (compression test), and biochemical studies, as well as to assess their dimensions and chemical composition. The exposure to Cd affected the mineral status of the L4. The decreased mineral content, density (BMD) and bone mineral area of the vertebral body together with the unchanged ratio of non-organic and organic components indicate osteoporotic nature of the Cd-induced changes. The activity of alkaline phosphatase in the L3 decreased. Cd also influenced the mechanical properties of the L4. The yield load and ultimate load decreased indicating a weakness in the vertebral body compression strength. Stiffness of the L4 decreased and the displacement at ultimate increased suggesting its enhanced susceptibility to deformities. Indeed, in the Cd group vertebral deformities (in 30% of females) or even fractures (in 40% of females), including those with disruption of bone continuity were evident. Z-score values for the L4 BMD revealed vertebral osteopenia in 30% and osteoporosis in 70% of the Cd-exposed females. The results allow for the conclusion that low lifetime exposure to Cd may become an important factor increasing the risk of lumbar spine osteoporosis with vertebral deformities and fractures in the elderly.
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PMID:Low-level exposure to cadmium during the lifetime increases the risk of osteoporosis and fractures of the lumbar spine in the elderly: studies on a rat model of human environmental exposure. 1537 91

Purpose. The aims of this study were to describe the symptoms experienced by patients in the first year following treatment for lower extremity sarcoma by limb conservation and to describe the relationship between symptoms and physical disability.Subjects. Eighty consecutive patients treated for primary bone or soft tissue sarcoma (STS) of the lower limb who were treated with limb preservation surgery.Methods. Subjects were evaluated by questionnaire at 6 weeks, and 3, 6, and 12 months post surgery. They identified whether they experienced any of the following symptoms: pain, stiffness, fatigue, weakness, limited range of motion, or swelling.The Toronto Extremity Salvage Score (TESS), a measure of physical disability, was also completed. Frequency of symptoms over time was calculated and change was evaluated using the Cochrane test. The relationship of symptoms to disability was analyzed with regression methods.Results. The mean age was 43.0, SD=20.4 with a gender ratio of 1:1. There were 38 bone tumours and 42 STS.The most frequently reported symptoms were: stiffness 48 (60%), weakness 41 (51%), fatigue 26 (33%), and pain 25 (31%) at 6 weeks. Stiffness and fatigue decreased and plateaued by 3 months. Complaints of weakness and pain continued to decrease over time. At 6 weeks, pain, stiffness, weakness and limited motion predicted disability in both univariate and multivariate analyses. At 12 months, pain, stiffness, fatigue, weakness and limited motion were significant predictors of the TESS in univariate analysis with only pain, stiffness and limited motion significant predictors in the multivariate model.Discussion. Pain, stiffness, fatigue, weakness and limited motion are common symptoms with stiffness and weakness decreasing significantly over time. The symptoms predictive of disability differ between the acute and late phases of recovery.
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PMID:Symptoms and their Relationship to Disability Following Treatment for Lower Extremity Tumours. 1852 Dec 66

This paper reports quantification of multivariable static ankle mechanical impedance when muscles were active. Repetitive measurements using a highly backdrivable therapeutic robot combined with robust function approximation methods enabled reliable characterization of the nonlinear torque-angle relation at the ankle in two coupled degrees of freedom simultaneously, a combination of dorsiflexion-plantarflexion and inversion-eversion, and how it varied with muscle activation. Measurements on 10 young healthy seated subjects quantified the behavior of the human ankle when muscles were active at 10% of maximum voluntary contraction. Stiffness, a linear approximation to static ankle mechanical impedance, was estimated from the continuous vector field. As with previous measurements when muscles were maximally relaxed, we found that ankle stiffness was highly direction-dependent, being weakest in inversion/eversion. Predominantly activating a single muscle or co-contracting antagonistic muscles significantly increased ankle stiffness in all directions but it increased more in the sagittal plane than in the frontal plane, accentuating the relative weakness of the ankle in the inversion-eversion direction. Remarkably, the observed increase was not consistent with simple superposition of muscle-generated stiffness, which may be due to the contribution of unmonitored deep ankle muscles. Implications for the assessment of neuro-mechanical disorders are discussed.
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PMID:Multivariable Static Ankle Mechanical Impedance With Active Muscles. 2410 70

In persons with calf muscle weakness, walking energy cost is commonly increased due to persistent knee flexion and a diminished push-off. Provided ankle-foot orthoses (AFOs) usually lower walking energy cost. To maximize the reduction in energy cost, AFO bending stiffness should be individually optimized, but this is not common practice. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate whether individually stiffness-optimized AFOs reduce walking energy cost compared to conventional AFOs in persons with non-spastic calf muscle weakness and, secondarily, whether stiffness-optimized AFOs improve walking speed and gait biomechanics. Thirty-seven persons with non-spastic calf muscle weakness using a conventional AFO were included. Participants were provided a new, individually stiffness-optimized AFO. Walking energy cost, speed and gait biomechanics were assessed, at delivery and 3-months follow-up. Stiffness-optimized AFOs reduced walking energy cost with 9.2% (-0.42J/kg/m, 95%CI: 0.26 to 0.57) compared to the conventional AFOs while walking speed increased with 5.2% (+0.05m/s, 95%CI: 0.03 to 0.08). In bilateral affected persons the effects were larger compared to unilateral affected persons (difference effect energy cost: 0.31J/kg/m, speed: +0.09m/s). Although individually gait biomechanics changed considerably, no significant group differences were found (p > 0.118). We demonstrated that individually stiffness-optimized AFOs considerably and meaningfully reduced walking energy cost compared to conventional AFOs, which was accompanied by an increase in walking speed. Especially in bilateral affected persons large effects of stiffness-optimization were found. The individual differences in gait changes substantiate the recommendation that the AFO bending stiffness should be individually tuned to minimize walking energy cost.
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PMID:Stiffness-Optimized Ankle-Foot Orthoses Improve Walking Energy Cost Compared to Conventional Orthoses in Neuromuscular Disorders: A Prospective Uncontrolled Intervention Study. 3283 37