Hillenbrand (United States)

Introduction: Songlines for Parkinson’s is a group-based, music-and-movement intervention co-developed with people with Parkinson’s (PwP) and a multidisciplinary team of scientists and practitioners for use in community settings (Rose et al., 2025). Three trials have been conducted in Switzerland and the UK demonstrating its effects on motor and non-motor symptoms. This study aimed to evaluate the application of Songlines within outpatient clinical settings in Switzerland (Köchli et al., 2025). Methods: The Songlines program was adapted for two clinical settings to evaluate its feasibility and impact. Study 1 focused on program development and comparison with a Gentle Gym program, while Study 2 assessed its implementation in an independent clinic. Pre- and post-intervention assessments included motor outcomes (e.g., MDS-UPDRS, 6-Minute Walk) and non-motor outcomes (e.g., HADS, PDQ-8). Acceptability and participant experience were further explored through qualitative methods and the Theory-Informed Intervention Acceptability Questionnaire. Results: In Study 1 (Gentle Gym n = 5; Songlines n = 6), mixed-effect models indicated post-intervention improvements in Romberg ratio (p = .021), reduced variability in stride length (p = .001), and increased stride velocity (p = .012) in both groups. In Study 2 (n = 6), Timed Up and Go performance (p = .042) and vividness of auditory imagery (p = .048) improved. Participants reported increased use of music for emotional regulation, and program acceptability was rated high (M = 4.5 [out of 5]). Discussion/Conclusion: Together, these two studies provide converging evidence that Songlines is a promising, flexible, and highly engaging intervention that can be delivered in a group setting, yet individualized according to patient needs. The program improves balance, gait stability, functional mobility and subjective wellbeing. Future research should develop sustainable models to expand access to this non-pharmacological, group-based intervention.

Abstract In this chapter, we explore the intricate relationships between young disabled children, their families, institutional settings, and disability services in Canada, with an emphasis on the challenges stemming from unstable custodial dynamics and governmental interference. Drawing on data from a 9-year longitudinal Institutional Ethnography across three provinces and one territory, we analyze the experiences of 41 families who have interacted with the child welfare system, foster care, adoption processes, family courts, or other custodial procedures – many of them are Indigenous or live with low income. The historic and ongoing state control and institutionalization of disabled children in Canada are interrogated through the lens of settler-colonialism (Awj, 2017; Disability Rights International, 2021). This chapter scrutinizes constructs framed by colonial narratives, including disabled childhoods, notions of disability, the “best interest of the child,” the archetype of the “good parent,” and the designation of custodial “status.” We present Institutional Ethnography as a method of de-constructing these systems and identifying care principles in the changing context of family.

The objective of this study is to examine the influence of electrode array design on the position of the basal-most electrode in cochlear implant (CI) surgery and therefore the stimulability of the basal cochlea. Specifically, we evaluated the angular insertion depth of the basal-most electrode in perimodiolar and straight electrode arrays in relation to postoperative speech perception. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 495 patients between 2013 and 2018 using the Cochlear™ Contour Advance® (CA), Cochlear™ Slim Straight® (SSA), or Cochlear™ Slim Modiolar® (SMA) electrode arrays, as well as the MED-EL Flex24 (F24), MED-EL Flex28 (F28), and MED-EL FlexSoft (F31.5) electrode arrays. Cochlear size and the position of the basal-most electrode were measured using rotational tomography or cone beam computed tomography, and the results were compared with postoperative speech perception in monosyllables and numbers. The straight electrode arrays, specifically the F31.5 (31.5 mm length) and the F28 (28 mm length), exhibited a significantly greater angular insertion depth of the basal-most electrode. No significant correlation was found between cochlear morphology measurements and the position of the basal-most electrode artifact. Cochleostomy-inserted electrode arrays showed a significantly higher insertion depth of the basal-most electrode. Nevertheless, the position of the basal-most electrode did not have a significant impact on postoperative speech perception. Straight electrode arrays with longer lengths achieved deeper angular insertion depths of the basal-most electrode. Cochlear morphology does not have a substantial influence on the position of basal-most electrode. The study confirms that the basal area of the cochlea, responsible for high-frequency range during acoustic stimulation, is not the primary region for speech understanding via electrical stimulation with CI.