•Dance can provide relevant benefit in rehabilitation of Parkinsonian patients.•Health improvement has been reported for PD people dancing tango.•Extensive professional tango training may be ...difficult for Parkinsonian patients.•A home based Tango training protocol was tested.•After five weeks, ten patients ameliorated their UPDRS and kinematic performances.
A style of dance called tango translates clinical practice into a new philosophy and rehabilitative approach for individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The style of dance mixes music, self-generated and external cued strategies and social and emotional recovery. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of studies reporting health benefits for people diagnosed with PD who dance tango. However, there are some organisational limitations to people participating in dance classes, including having trained Tango teachers, an appropriate space for dancing, and schedule that allows for participants with motor inabilities.
This pilot study involved the observation of PD patients who completed four days of home exercise plus a tango dance lesson each week for five weeks.
Ten PD patients improved their quality of life, their motor score on the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale and their kinematic performances.
We propose a protocol of exercises that has been derived from the tango dance and that can be performed in a patient’s home.
•A very accurate electronic solar compass was used for the first time in archaeology.•The solar compass measured the orientation of structures in the Tiberius’ cave.•Two niches in the Tiberius’ cave ...are perfectly aligned to the winter solstice in 1 AD.•We discuss if the statue of Andromeda acted as the gnomon in the winter solstice.
We exploit a very accurate electronic solar compass used for the first time in archaeology, to measure the orientation of structures at the Tiberius’ Cave, which is adjacent to the Villa of the Roman emperor Tiberius located nearby the National Archaeological Museum in Sperlonga, Italy. The measures are aimed at verifying whether Tiberius’ Cave artefacts were aligned to specific astronomical events, connected to the apparent motion of the Sun. The experimental results suggest the intentional alignment of two niches to provide an accurate reference during the sunset on the day of the winter solstice at the time of Tiberius.
Abstract Objective To assess the efficacy, safety and tolerability of sodium valproate (800 mg/die) compared with placebo in medication-overuse headache patients with a history of migraine without ...aura. Methods This is a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study enrolled medication-overuse headache patients for a 3-month treatment period with sodium valproate (800 mg/day) or placebo after a 6 day outpatient detoxification regimen, followed by a 3-month follow-up. Primary outcome was defined by the proportion of patients achieving ≥50% reduction in the number of days with headache per month (responders) from the baseline to the last 4 weeks of the 3-month treatment. Multivariate logistic regression models were used on the primary endpoint, adjusting for age, sex, disease duration, comorbidity and surgery. The last-observation-carried-forward method was used to adjust for missing values. Results Nine sites enrolled 130 patients and, after a 6-day detoxification phase, randomized 88 eligible patients. The 3-month responder rate was higher in the sodium valproate (45.0%) than in the placebo arm (23.8%) with an absolute difference of about 20% ( p =0.0431). Sodium valproate had safety and tolerability profiles comparable to placebo. Conclusions The present study supports the efficacy and safety of sodium valproate in the treatment of medication overuse headache with history of migraine after detoxification.
Built by the emperor Hadrian starting in 117 A.D., the villa is a masterpiece of ancient Roman architecture. Our Accademia Pilot project studied and surveyed the Accademia Esplanade, the highest ...artificial terrace of the villa, discovering that it was astronomically oriented along the solstitial axis, as were its main buildings, Accademia and Roccabruna. From 2009 to 2011 we photographed a series of light phenomena. In the Accademia at dawn of the winter solstice or at sunset of the summer solstice (opposed by 180°) the sun shines through the main axis of the building, creating spots of light in the Temple of Apollo. In Roccabruna at the summer solstice the sun creates a blade of light inside the dome. Archaeoastronomy provided a new key for understanding the meaning and function of those buildings, which were probably dedicated to the cult of the Egyptian goddess Isis, linked to the seasons.
In this study, a series of machine learning models, based on the analysis of graph and handwriting signals, were developed for the screening and telemonitoring of Parkinson's disease. The latter one ...is a multisystem neurodegenerative disease, which slowly affects the brain, and it is characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms that tend to worsen with the passage of time. The most common motor alterations are bradykinesia (motor slowing and reduced amplitude of motion), tremor, plastic hypertonia (muscle rigidity), balance disorders and postural instability. These motor disorders can also cause dysgraphia, i.e., changes in writing, as early as the onset. In particular, "micrography" is defined as the anomalous decrease in the size of the graphological tract. A careful analysis of the handwriting makes possible an early diagnosis and study of the evolution of the disease. For this purpose, data were collected from 16 parkinsonian and 42 healthy subjects. The patients carried out a simple and fast protocol that involves the execution of specific drawing and writing tasks. It was possible to do everything remotely; in fact, the objective of this work, which is part of a research project already started, is to intervene early at home and then direct the subject to instrumental examinations in the hospital. The data collection was carried out through a graphic tablet that, thanks to a specific acquisition software, allowed to know in real time information such as position, inclination and pressure of the digital pen. Therefore, different characteristics were extracted, then selected by statistical testing and with these different models were developed, which showed interesting accuracy values above 90%, in line and in some cases more performing than the current literature. Finally, an update was made to the application for smartphones and tablets in iOS and Android systems, which allowed the collection and saving of both graphic and voice signals in real time.
This article presents our discovery of the astronomical orientation of the city of Aventicum, the capital of ancient Roman Helvetia, where the sacred complex formed by the Temple of the Cigognier and ...the Theater were oriented along the axis that links the sunset of the Summer Solstice and the sunrise of the Winter Solstice. Also the East and West doors of the city were astronomically oriented on the axis that links the sunrise of the Summer Solstice and the sunset of the Winter Solstice. On July 13th, 2017 I had the fortune to visit two extraordinary Roman sites in Switzerland, Avenches and Vallon, together with friend Cristiano Castelletti, a great scholar as well as an excellent journalist of the Swiss-Italian Radio. This article is dedicated to his memory, because unfortunately Cristiano passed away in 2017, leaving a great void for us all.
In this presentation we will discuss three Roman monuments of the times of Emperor Hadrian (117-138 AD): the Villa Adriana at Tivoli near Rome, the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome (now Castel ...Sant'Angelo) and finally the Pantheon (also in Rome). In all of them we see luminous phenomena which occur only in few set days during the year; they correspond to astronomical events such as the Solstices or other important dates of the Roman calendar. As we will see, this did not happen by chance and had a precise symbolic meaning. Also, we will explain why there are no written sources about Roman oriented buildings and their illuminations, producing an ancient and rare documentation: the description of the "Kiss of the Sun".
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