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Biomedical subjects

Peter V Loubert

Publications and source records attributed to Peter V Loubert.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Reducing postural sway by manipulating the difficulty levels of a cognitive task and a balance task.

Postural sway decreases when participants perform a balance task concurrently with a cognitive task. The present study examined whether this is based on the difficulty of the cognitive task, the difficulty of the balance task, or a combination of both. Participants completed easy and difficult Brooks' spatial and nonsense memory tasks in sitting and standing. Postural sway was measured while they performed one of three balance tasks concurrently with the Brooks' tasks and two control tasks. Performing the difficult cognitive task, yet not the easy cognitive task, was associated with a decrease in postural sway, F (3, 273)=3.53, MSE=0.007, p=0.015. The decrease was not influenced by the difficulty of the balance task. The difficulty level of the cognitive task was the critical factor that decreased sway in dual task conditions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Improving balance by performing a secondary cognitive task.

Contrary to general findings in the attention and memory literature, some studies have shown that performing a secondary cognitive task produces an improvement in balance performance. The purpose of the present experiment was to investigate under what condition such an improvement would occur. Young and older adults were asked to hold as still as possible on a platform that measured sway while performing or not performing the encoding phase of the Brooks' (1967) spatial or non-spatial memory task. The difficulty of maintaining balance was manipulated by varying the availability of visual input and sway-referenced motion of the platform. Sway scores were computed based on the distance between the individual pressure centres and the average centre of pressure during each 20-s trial. The results indicated that both the spatial and non-spatial memory tasks improved balance for older adults under the most difficult balance condition.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Treatment of fabella syndrome with manual therapy: a case report.

STUDY DESIGN: Clinical case report. OBJECTIVES: To educate clinicians about fabella syndrome as a possible cause for posterolateral knee pain and dysfunction. Also to describe a physical therapy intervention strategy for posterolateral knee pain secondary to hypomobility or malposition of a fabella. BACKGROUND: A 44-year-old, physically fit, Caucasian male with a 10-year history of left posterolateral knee pain and functional limitations during athletic activities, walking, and activities of daily living presented for evaluation and treatment. He had previously experienced relief of symptoms after experimenting with a mechanical maneuver administered by his wife. METHODS AND MEASURES: A thorough examination for strength, range of motion, and accessory motions was performed. A fabella was palpable in the lateral head of the gastrocnemius muscle and a provisional diagnosis of fabella syndrome was made. While in a prone position, the patient received soft tissue mobilization of the lateral gastrocnemius, followed by medial, lateral, and inferior glides of the fabella. RESULTS: The patient reported an immediate reduction in posterolateral knee pain and demonstrated a 30 degrees increase in active knee flexion. CONCLUSIONS: Physical therapists may be unaware that fabella syndrome is a possible source of posterolateral knee pain and dysfunction. This simple manual therapy intervention was effective in reducing symptoms of pain and increasing tolerance for activities involving knee flexion, extension, and rotation. Physical therapists may wish to add this diagnosis and the corresponding examination and intervention techniques to their management strategy for patients with fabella syndrome.

Adult↗