Fibromyalgia (FM) is characterised by chronic, continuous, widespread pain, often associated with a sense of fatigue, non-restorative sleep and physical exhaustion. Due to the nature of this condition and the absence of other neurological issues potentially able to induce disorders in body representations per se, it represents a perfect model since it provides an opportunity to study the relationship between pain and the bodily self. Corporeal illusions were investigated in 60 participants with or without a diagnosis of FM by means of an ad hoc devised interview. In addition, motor imagery was investigated and illusions relating to body part movements and changes in body size, feelings of alienness, and sensations of body parts not belonging to one’s own body (disownership and somatoparaphrenic-like sensations) were found. Crucially, these symptoms do not correlate with any of the clinical measures of pain or functional deficits. The results showed that motor imagery was also impaired, and the severity of the deficits found correlated with the functional impairment of the participant. This indicates that disorders in body representations and motor imagery are part of the clinical expression of FM. However, while motor imagery seems to be linked to reduced autonomy and functional deficits, bodily illusions are independent and potentially represent a concurrent symptom.

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Digitalization is one of the fundamental pillars of Industry 4.0. Within smart factories, Big Data Analytics systems play a key role in supporting the decision-making process of various stages of business processes. In this context, this research aims to identify solutions able to process large volumes of data from digital business processes with the final goal of adding value to the organisation. More specifically, the research deals with the implementation of a digital manufacturing tool able to digitize the workforce management process. The research has been applied in the case study of an Italian manufacturing company operating in the leather goods sector through the digitalization of the workforce management by a cloud-based platform. The implementation of the tool increases the efficiency of the production process, provides efficient management and integrates workforce data into one system. The implemented tool generates a large volume of data, the final goal is to make data user-friendly to support business decisions. Digitisation provides an exchange of information to support managers to make confident decisions.