Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment

Abstract Background: Functional movements, posture, and body mass index (BMI) have been some of the most frequently used parameters to assess the well-being of an individual. Although widely studied internationally, the association between functional movements, posture, and BMI is still poorly understood in Indian children. Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between Functional Movement Screen (FMS) scores, posture, and BMI in urban children aged 12–16 years. Study Design: This was a correlational study design. Methods: A sample of 40 children was taken from the community through convenient sampling. Both boys and girls between the ages of 12–16 years were recruited for the study, having no physical, neurological, cardiorespiratory, or mental health condition. Height and weight were measured for each child; functional movements were assessed using the FMS, and posture was assessed using the Posture and Postural Ability Scale. Data analysis was done using IBM SPSS V26 and MS Excel 2010. Results: Significant positive correlations were found between FMS and quality of posture in prone ( r = 0.571, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.32–0.75, P < 0.001), sitting ( r = 0.492, 95% CI: 0.21–0.70, P = 0.001), and standing positions ( r = 0.423, 95% CI: 0.13–0.65, P = 0.006). Significant negative correlations were observed between BMI and quality of posture in prone ( r = −0.443, 95% CI: −0.66 to −0.15, P = 0.004), sitting ( r = −0.320, 95% CI: −0.57 to −0.01, P = 0.044), and standing positions ( r = −0.479, 95% CI: −0.69 to −0.20, P = 0.002). Conclusion: Better functional movement (higher FMS scores) is significantly associated with better posture quality in all positions. Conversely, higher BMI is significantly linked to poorer posture quality in prone, sitting, and standing. Future studies from rural areas are required for more generalized results.

Various approaches have been used to address the issue of drinking water scarcity, some of which are costly. This study proposes a long-term two-phase approach for purifying natural rainwater. Rainwater is collected and held in a tilted glasshouse where it absorbs the sun's rays and kills the most hazardous viruses once it reaches a certain temperature. An IoT-based temperature control sensor regulates the flow of water at the glasshouse's outflow based on the temperature of the water, which is signaled by an LED light. After this first stage, water passes through ceramic filtering for the second level of purification. This sustainable, inexpensive, and effective solution for cleaning natural and rainwater collection systems will be crucial for a two-stage purification technique. Purified water can be collected using an equidistant tube that fits beneath the slanting glass covering.

Everyone has a story to tell but everyday lives of each and every woman are so full of all the elements befitting a movie be it artistic, tragic, heroic or moving. An average Indian woman has her own share of struggles by mere virtue of being a woman and which have been handed down to her over centuries of tradition no matter what her socio-economic or religious background is. Still she has been doing a commendable job in different aspects of life. But the situation becomes rather grim in context of women living in conflict or stuck in war zones. History has shown that during times of war and conflict women have been targeted with extreme forms of violence and even made an object of revenge. They have thus been kept aloof from conflicts, conflict prevention or conflict resolution. This however has not deterred the violence meted out to them in conflict zones.

Ambedkar was one of the pioneer reformists for women and had a vision of ‘New India’. He articulated the women’s rights to education, marriage, and health through the constitutional provisions. This study aims to revisit the notions of Babasaheb Ambedkar on women’s empowerment focusing on education, child marriage, and health; and also, to examine the current status of women in present India concerning aforesaid aspects. For portraying the status of women, recent data from National Family Health Survey (NFHS) were analyzed. The results of the analysis reveal that despite the improvement in the status of women, there is still prevailing a significant share in child marriage, fertility rate, early pregnancy, spousal violence, and violence during pregnancy also which influences directly their health condition. The study evidently indicates a reminder for every individual in general and policy-makers in particular to reinforce the vision of Ambedkar for women. More importantly, the alarming health condition of rural women must be improved by increasing public healthcare facilities and awareness of health education for the sake of Sustainable Development.

This is a methodological research design. Spinal cord injury (SCI) may result in the inability to sit unsupported. This may lead to difficulty performing daily living activities. To make the subjects with SCI independent in their daily living to the maximum possible extent, therapists provide them balance training for which they may require to assess the sitting balance. This study aims to develop an objective measure 'Sitting Balance Measure' (SBM) for the assessment of sitting balance of the subjects with SCI, and to determine its content validity and internal consistency reliability. This study was conducted in New Delhi, India. The study was conducted in three phases, namely planning, construction and quantitative evaluation phase. Thirty-six items were generated through the review of literature and semistructured interviews. Qualitative and quantitative content validation through the expert opinion and the content validity ratio (CVR) method resulted in the 24-item scale, which was pilot-tested on a purposive sample of 30 subjects with SCI. Item analysis was conducted to determine internal consistency reliability. CVR method and qualitative review by the experts validated the content of SBM. The SBM has high internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha=0.96). SBM is a valid scale for the assessment of sitting balance in subjects with SCI. Internal consistency reliability of SBM is high. This may be indicative of item redundancy, which necessitates the need for the second pilot test to refine the scale further.

Background: Many stroke survivors continue to experience gait deficits. Functional electrical stimulation may be a viable method to improve gait post-stroke. Objective: The purpose of this parallel group controlled clinical trial was to investigate the therapeutic effect of functional electrical stimulation (FES) on gait, motor recovery, and motor cortex activity. Methods: Adults experiencing foot drop <6 months poststroke were allocated to the FES group (physiotherapy and FES stimulation, n = 14) or the control group (physiotherapy, n = 14). Each group received their respective therapy 5 days/week for 12 weeks. Gait, surface electromyography (sEMG) of the tibialis anterior muscle in the affected leg, and electroencephalogram (EEG) signals from the foot motor area were assessed at baseline and again after the 12-week intervention. Results: The results showed that the FES intervention induced significantly more changes in various gait swing parameters such as foot pulling acceleration (measured in unit of gravitational constant G; net between-group difference: 0.11 ± 0.02 G, p = 0.021), swing power (0.11 ± 0.03 G, p = 0.027) and ground impact (0.12 ± 0.04 G, p = 0.046) than the control group. EEG analysis revealed that the FES group had significantly altered beta-3 mean (0.50 ± 0.09, p = 0.021), beta-4 mean (0.60 ± 0.05, p = 0.024) and alpha peak frequency (0.15 ± 0.02, p = 0.035). Finally, analysis of sEMG data showed a significantly greater increase in amplitude (in root mean square; 13.2 ± 2.11 μV, p = 0.033), mean power frequency (5.5 ± 0.80 Hz, p = 0.024) and median power frequency (6.5 ± 0.90 Hz, p = 0.021) of the tibialis anterior muscle on the affected side in the FES group. Conclusion: FES combined with physiotherapy induced better outcomes in the swing phase of the gait cycle, activation of the affected ankle dorsiflexor muscles and cortical function when compared with conventional physiotherapy alone.

Background: Individuals fitted with hearing aids complain of the unnatural sound quality of their voice, other internally generated sounds such as chewing and swallowing sounds “hollow”, “muffled” sounds. Receiver-In-Canal hearing aids are favored due to small size, discrete appearance and ability to minimize occlusion. Aim: To compare the performance of Receiver-In-Canal (RIC) to traditional ear tip (ET), ear moulds (EM) fittings using Functional gain measures. Method: Ten subjects with flat moderately severe sensori neural hearing loss participated in the study. Subjective unaided and aided measures for digital BTE hearing aids with ear tip, ear mould or Receiver-In-Canal for pure tones of 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, 4000 Hz were obtained. Results and Discussion: Higher scores were obtained with Receiver-In-Canal fitting on Functional gain measures. No significant difference between all the three conditions was obtained at low frequencies especially at 500 Hz, as Receiver-In-Canal hearing aids attenuate low frequency sounds automatically when the ear is left open (up to 30 dB less amplification at 500 Hz) especially for hearing in noisy situations. Conclusion: The results suggest that Receiver-In-Canal fittings are an effective means of overcoming the major barriers to the acceptance of amplification and further suggest the clinical importance of subjective measures in measuring aided benefit of open-fit devices in the rehabilitation of person’s with moderately severe to severe SN hearing loss.

Background/Objective: The upper extremity motor deficit is one of the functional challenges in post stroke patients. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the meaningful task-specific training (MTST) on the upper extremity motor recovery during the subacute phase after a stroke. Method: This was a randomized, controlled, double-blinded trial in the neurology department of a university hospital and occupational therapy unit of a rehabilitation institute. A convenience sample of 103 people, 4 to 24 weeks (mean, 12.15 weeks) after the stroke, was randomized into 2 groups (MTST, 51; standard training group, 52). Subjects in the Brunnstrom stage of arm recovery of 2 to 5 were included in the study. Ninety-five participants completed the 8-week follow-up. Interventions: Participants were assigned to receive either the MTST or dose-matched standard training program based on the Brunnstrom stage and Bobath neurodevelopmental technique, 4 to 5 days a week for 4 weeks. Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA), Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), Graded Wolf Motor Function Test (GWMFT), and Motor Activity Log (MAL) were outcome measures Results: The MTST group showed a positive improvement in the mean scores on the outcome measures at post and follow-up assessments in comparison to the control group. Further, statistically significant differences were observed in changes between the groups at post and follow-up assessment for FMA, ARAT, GWMFT, and MAL. Conclusion: The MTST produced statistically significant and clinically relevant improvements in the upper extremity motor recovery of the patients who had a subacute stroke.

Background and Objective: The ability to walk is impaired in more than 80% of poststroke patients. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the task-oriented circuit class training (TOCCT) with motor imagery (MI) on the gait during the subacute phase after a stroke. Method: This was a randomized, controlled, assessor-blinded trial in a neurology department of a university hospital. A convenience sample of 30 people, 4 to 12 weeks (mean, 6.3 weeks) after the stroke was randomized into 2 groups (the TOCCT with MI and standard training group) of 15 people each. Twenty-nine participants completed the 6-week follow-up. Participants were assigned to receive either the TOCCT with MI or dose-matched standard training program based on the Bobath’s neurodevelopmental technique, 7 days a week for 2 weeks, as outpatients or inpatients. Outcome measures were the Functional Ambulation Classification (FAC), the Rivermead Visual Gait Assessment (RVGA), step length asymmetry, walking speed, and 6-minute walk test (6MWT). Results: The TOCCT with MI group showed a positive improvement in the mean/median scores on most of the outcome measures at post and follow-up assessments in comparison to the control group. However, statistically significant differences were observed in changes between the groups at post and follow-up assessment for FAC, RVGA, walking speed, and 6MWT (ANOVA, P = .001 to .049; Mann-Whitney U test, P = .001). Conclusion: Among the patients who had a stroke within the previous 4 to 12 weeks, the TOCCT with MI produced statistically significant and clinically relevant improvements in the gait and the gait-related activities.