The virtual reality format had improved selective attention and conflict resolution ability, revealing the potential of CR, specifically with virtual reality exercise, on executive function. Implications for Rehabilitation In cardiac rehabilitation, especially in phase III, it is important to develop and to present alternative strategies, as virtual reality using the Kinect in a home context. Taking into account the relationship between the improvement of the executive function with physical exercise, it is relevant to access the impact of a cardiac rehabilitation program on the executive function. Enhancing the value of the phase III of cardiac rehabilitation.

Health literacy, a more complex concept than knowledge, is a required capacity to obtain, understand, integrate and act on health information [1], in order to enhance individual and community health, which is defined by different levels, according to the autonomy and personal capacitation in decision making [2]. Medium levels of Health literacy in an adolescent population were found in a study conducted in 2013/2014, being higher in sexual and reproductive health and lower in substance use. It was also noticed that the higher levels of health literacy were in the area adolescents refer to have receipt more health information. The health literacy competence with higher scores was communication skills, and the lower scores were in the capacity to analyze factors that influence health. Higher levels were also found in younger teenagers, but in a higher school level, confirming the importance of health education in these age and development stage. Adolescents seek more information in health professionals and parents, being friends more valued as a source information in older adolescents, which enhance the importance of peer education mainly in older adolescents [3]. As a set of competences based on knowledge, health literacy should be developed through education interventions, encompassing the cultural and social context of individuals, since the society, culture and education system where the individual is inserted can define the way the development and enforcement of the health literacy competences [4]. The valued sources of information should be taken into account, as well as needs of information in some topics referred by adolescents in an efficient health education. Schizophrenia is a serious and chronic mental illness which has a profound effect on the health and well-being related with the well-known nature of psychotic symptoms. The exercise has the potential to improve the life of people with schizophrenia improving physical health and alleviating psychiatric symptoms. However, most people with schizophrenia remains sedentary and lack of access to exercise programs are barriers to achieve health benefits. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of exercise on I) the type of intervention in mental health, II) in salivary levels of alpha-amylase and cortisol and serum levels of S100B and BDNF, and on III) the quality of life and selfperception of the physical domain of people with schizophrenia. The sample consisted of 31 females in long-term institutions in the Casa de Saúde Rainha Santa Isabel, with age between 25 and 63, and with diagnosis of schizophrenia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). Physical fitness was assessed by the six-minute walk distance test (6MWD). Biological variables were determined by ELISA (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay). Psychological variables were assessed using SF-36, PSPP-SCV, RSES and SWLS tests. Walking exercise has a positive impact on physical fitness (6MWD -p = 0.001) and physical components of the psychological test...

Cardiovascular diseases lead to a high consumption of financial resources. An important part of the recovery process is the cardiovascular rehabilitation. This study aimed to present a new cardiovascular rehabilitation system to 11 outpatients with coronary artery disease from a Hospital in Porto, Portugal, later collecting their opinions. This system is based on a virtual reality game system, using the Kinect sensor while performing an exercise protocol which is integrated in a home-based cardiovascular rehabilitation programme, with a duration of 6 months and at the maintenance phase. The participants responded to a questionnaire asking for their opinion about the system. The results demonstrated that 91% of the participants (n = 10) enjoyed the artwork, while 100% (n = 11) agreed on the importance and usefulness of the automatic counting of the number of repetitions, moreover 64% (n = 7) reported motivation to continue performing the programme after the end of the study, and 100% (n = 11) recognized Kinect as an instrument with potential to be an asset in cardiovascular rehabilitation. Criticisms included limitations in motion capture and gesture recognition, 91% (n = 10), and the lack of home space, 27% (n = 3). According to the participants' opinions, the Kinect has the potential to be used in cardiovascular rehabilitation; however, several technical details require improvement, particularly regarding the motion capture and gesture recognition.

Background: Breast cancer remains a leading cause of death by cancer worldwide. It is commonly accepted that angiogenesis and the expression of angiogenic factors such as vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) is associated with the increased risk of metastasis and poor patient outcome.Objective: This work aimed to evaluate the effects of long-term exercise training on the growth and vascularization of mammary tumors in a rat model. Materials and methods:Fifty female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups: two N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU)-exposed groups (exercised and sedentary) and two control groups (exercised and sedentary). MNU was administered once, intraperitoneally at 7 weeks-old. Animals were then exercised on a treadmill for 35 weeks. Mammary tumors were evaluated using thermography, ultrasonography [Power Doppler (PDI), B Flow and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)], and immunohistochemistry (VEGF-A).Results: Both, MNU sedentary and exercised groups showed 100% of tumor incidence, but exercised animals showed less tumors with an increased latency period. Exercise training also enhanced VEGF-A immunoexpression and vascularization (microvessel density, MVD) (p < 0.05), and reduced histological aggressiveness. Ultrasound and 2 -thermal imaging analysis confirmed the enhanced vascularization of tumors on exercised animals.Conclusion: Long-term exercise training increased VEGF-A expression, leading to enhanced tumor vascularization and reduced tumor burden, multiplicity and histological aggressiveness.

A contemporary understanding of Chinese Medicine (CM) regards CM diagnosis as a functional vegetative state that may be treated by vegetative reflex therapies such as acupuncture. Within this context, traditional mind-body exercises such as Qigong can be understood as an attempt to enhance physiological proprioception, by combining a special state of “awareness” with posture, movement, and breath control. We have formerly trained young auditing flutists in “White Ball” Qigong to minimize anxiety-induced cold hands and lower anxiety-induced heart rate. Functional changes occurred 2–5 min after training and were observed over the whole training program, allowing the children to control their symptoms. In our current work, we report that warm fingers and calm hearts could be induced by the children even without Qigong exercises. Thus, these positive changes once induced and “conditioned” vegetatively were stable after weeks of training. This may show the mechanism by which Qigong acts as a therapeutic measure in disease: positive vegetative pathways may be activated instead of dysfunctional functional patterns. The positive vegetative patterns then may be available in critical stressful situations. Qigong exercise programs may therefore be understood as an ancient vegetative biofeedback exercise inducing positive vegetative functions which are added to the individual reactive repertoire.

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This study assessed the impact of acute exposure to whole-body vibration in skin temperature of the lower limbs in healthy subjects. Twelve healthy volunteers (mean age 24.55 years) were randomly assigned to two groups and were exposed to different whole-body vibration protocols (35 Hz and 40 Hz frequency and 5-6 mm amplitude). Skin temperature was measured before and immediately after exposure. Infrared thermography measurements revealed that skin temperature decreased significantly after exposure to vibration. The results were different for both vibration frequencies. Exposure to 35 Hz vibration produced significant decreases in skin temperature in some of the studied regions of interest and exposure to 40 Hz vibration produced significant decreases in skin temperature in all studied regions of interest.

Purpose Maintenance is one of the most critical and expensive operations during the life cycle of metallic structures, in particular in the aeronautic industry. However, early detection of fatigue cracks is one of the most demanding operations in global maintenance procedures. In this context, non-destructive testing using image techniques may represent one of the best solutions in such situations, especially thermal stress analyses (TSA) using infrared thermography. The purpose of this paper is to access and characterize the main stress profile calculated through temperature variation, for different load frequencies. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, a cyclic load is applied to an aluminum sample component while infrared thermal image is being acquired. According to the literature and experiments, a cyclic load applied to a material results in cyclic temperature variation. Findings Frequency has been shown to be an important parameter in TSA evaluations, increasing the measured stress profile amplitude. The loading stimulation frequency and the maximum stress recorded show a good correlation (R2 higher than 0.995). It was verified that further tests and modeling should be performed to fully comprehend the influence of load frequency and to create a standard to conduct thermal stress tests. Originality/value This work revealed that the current infrared technology is capable of reaching far more detailed thermal and spatial resolution than the one used in the development of TSA models. Thus, for the first time the influence of mechanical load frequency in the thermal profiles of TSA is visible and consequentially the measured mechanical stress.