Motor Impairment Blog


Aerobic exercise enhances fluid intelligence in stroke patients

Fluid intelligence, sometimes called abstract reasoning, is the ability to think logically and solve problems; a highly valued human capacity. Over 70% of patients admitted to hospital with stroke have cognitive impairment, but cognition is rarely a target of rehabilitation treatments. Moderate-vigorous intensity aerobic exercise is a potent brain stimulus […]


We mislocalise landmarks on our hand when we can’t see it

Previous studies have shown that healthy individuals, when asked to locate the position of the tips and knuckles of each finger on their hand when it could not be seen, consistently misjudge the size and shape of their hand (Longo & Haggard, 2010). They overestimate the width of their hand […]


A tailored multidisciplinary intervention reduces the burden of dizziness in middle-aged and older people

Dizziness is a debilitating symptom that affects 10-30% of middle-aged and older people (Aggarwal et al, 2000; Colledge et al, 1994). People with dizziness often report poor health outcomes including reduced quality of life, depression, fear of falling and falls (Aggarwal et al, 2000; Colledge et al, 1994; Tinetti et […]


The learning effect with 1RM strength tests

The one repetition maximum (1RM) is a test of muscle strength. It is defined as the maximal amount of weight an individual can lift once, but not twice, when using the correct technique. Common 1RM tests include the bench press, chest press machine, biceps curl, lat pulldown, back squat, leg […]


Aerobic exercise reduces pressure pain more than heat pain in healthy adults 2

Exercise-induced hypoalgesia is a reduction in pain that occurs during or following a single bout of exercise (Naugle et al, 2012). When researchers test exercise-induced hypoalgesia, they briefly induce painful stimuli to research participants to see if pain sensitivity changes after exercise. Different types of painful stimuli have been used […]


Antidepressants help us understand why we get fatigued during exercise

In general, the term ‘fatigue’ is used to describe any exercise-induced decline in the ability of a muscle to generate force. To identify the causes of fatigue, it is common to examine two divisions of the body that might be affected during exercise. The central component of fatigue includes the […]


Motor Impairment on an international stage

On November 26, some of the finest minds in medical science will meet in Sydney, Australia to discuss the latest  research on motor impairments – the diseases or health conditions that disrupt function of the human motor system (brain, nerves, and muscles) and cause physical disability. The event that will […]


Interventions that involve repetitive practice improve strength and function after stroke

The loss of strength after stroke is a common and important impairment. Some people who have had a severe stroke can lose as much as 50–70% strength in the affected arm and leg (Andrews & Bohannon 2003; Horstman et al. 2008). This loss of strength can result in profound disability […]


How active are adults? Habitual durations of physical activity and sedentary behavior depend on age and gender

Regular physical activity is important for our health and well-being. Recent evidence suggests that independent of being physically active, limiting the duration of sedentary behavior, such as sitting or lying down, is important to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and all-cause mortality (Biswas et al. 2015). Advances […]


Breathing: an automatic process until your 70s?

We don’t normally have to think about our breathing and that’s because breathing is handled by a subconscious part of the brain called the medulla. The medulla automatically controls our breathing as well as our heart rate and blood pressure (Del Negro et al. 2018). It sends neural signals to the […]