Content - Volume 19, Issue 4

Thirty-six patients with "chronic primary fibromyalgia" combined with dysesthesia were studied using oculomotor tests. The test results were compared with those of a control group consisting of 71 healthy persons. The saccades were found to be abnormal in 42% of the patients studied. The maximum velocity of the saccades was often reduced, while the accuracy was normal. The smooth pursuit eye movem ...

Thirty-six patients (31 females and 5 males) with "chronic primary fibromyalgia" combined with dysesthesia were studied using neuroaudiological tests. Auditory brainstem response (ABR) was pathological in 11 patients (31%). In six instances the I-V interpeak latency (IPL) was prolonged, in two instances the interaural difference of wave V (IT5) was pathological, and in three instances there was a ...

The placebo effect of vibratory stimulation was studied in 72 patients with chronic pain syndromes in a double-blind crossover trial using a vibrator and a "placebo unit". Pain alleviation was reported by 48% of the patients during vibratory stimulation compared with 34% for placebo treatment; statistical significance (p less than 0. 005).

Muscular load on the back and hip muscles was quantified and compared using a muscular strength utilization ratio (MUR). The MUR was obtained by dividing the total moment about the bilateral joint axis by the counteracting maximum muscular strength at the same joint angle. 72 different postures during simulated packing work were studied, with different combinations of box size, angle, edge height ...

When a patient with a musculoskeletal disorder returns to work after rehabilitation, the work-station should be designed so that the impaired muscle groups are less exposed to load. The work posture desirable for a particular muscle group might impose higher load on another muscle group. Since the shoulder muscles usually are stronger than the elbow muscles, a direct comparison of the loads is dif ...