The aim of this study was to describe and update current knowledge of manual therapy accuracy in treating cervical and lumbar radiculopathy, to identify the limitations in current studies, and to suggest areas for future research. The study was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews. A comprehensive literature review was conducted using PubMed and Web of Science databases up to April 2020. The following inclusion criteria were used: (1) presence of radiculopathy; (2) treatment defined as manual therapy (i.e., traction, manipulation, mobilization); and (3) publication defined as a Randomized Controlled Trial. The electronic literature search resulted in 473 potentially relevant articles. Finally, 27 articles were accepted: 21 on cervical (CR) and 6 in lumbar radiculopathy (LR). The mean PEDro score for CR was 6.6 (SD 1.3), and for LR 6.7 (SD 1.6). Traction-oriented techniques are the most frequently chosen treatment form for CR and are efficient in reducing pain and improving functional outcomes. In LR, each of the included publications used a different form of manual therapy, which makes it challenging to summarize knowledge in this group. Of included publications, 93% were either of moderate or low quality, which indicates that quality improvement is necessary for this type of research.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought out the need to deliver health care services at a distance in the form of telerehabilitation (TR). This study aimed to analyse the Italian speech and language therapists’ (SLTs) opinions on the feasibility of the TR in the field of speech-language therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic. We developed an anonymous survey to determine the SLTs’ opinions on feasibility of TR during lockdown caused by COVID-19. We analysed the survey’s answers provided by 136 SLTs. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient showed good reliability of the survey. The SLTs working previously with TR showed better judgements regarding this method. The comparison analysis between TR and face-to-face treatment delivery showed statistically significant differences as follows: “importance” (4.35 vs. 3.32, p = 0.001), “feasibility” (3.37 vs. 2.11, p < 0.001), “alternative form” (3.64 vs. 2.58, p = 0.001) and “comparison” (2.24 vs. 1.69, p < 0.001), but not with “familiarity” (p = 0.81). The survey showed that most of the Italian SLTs were not satisfied with TR systems. SLTs who used TR previously had a better opinion on this treatment modality. Experience and familiarity with TR systems were key factors for the use of this new rehabilitation modality.

Lumbar segmental instability (LSI) can cause pain and disability, and its background can be related to lumbar disc herniation (LDH). This retrospective study was conducted to analyze the prevalence of lumbar segmental instability (LSI) in young patients with different types of lumbar disc herniation (LDH). The study evaluated 133 individuals (18–25 years old) who suffered from LDH and underwent MRI and flexion-extension X-rays. Two groups were created: protrusion (PRO) and extrusion (EXT). LSI was scored positive when translatory motion was greater than 4 mm anteriorly or 2 mm posteriorly at the level of herniation. Statistica 13 was used to perform statistics. The LSI overall prevalence was 18.33% in PRO and 21.92% in EXT (p > 0.05). Out of all LSI positives, higher LSI incidence was observed in females compared to males; in PRO: 63.64%; in EXT: 68.75% (p > 0.05). LSI correlated positively with the passive lumbar extension test (PLE) (R = 0.32; p = 0.01) in the PRO group only. In summary, the results showed that the overall incidence of LSI was higher with severer disc damage. In addition, females were more prone to this pathology. However, the different types of LDH do not significantly affect the prevalence of LSI in young individuals.

The research assessed thermoregulation processes in early school-age children. Thermal maps of the subjects' bodies were compared before and after general physical exercise and after post-exercise restitution to establish differences between the sexes. The research involved 40 students aged 7, including 20 boys. The subjects participated in interval training which maintained the pulse at 60-80% HRmax. Measurements of body surface temperatures were taken in 12 fields with ThermoVision FLIR SYSTEM T335 camera before exercise, immediately after exercise and after 15 min of restitution. Statistical analysis was based on the Shapiro-Wilk test to verify the normality of variables, multivariate analysis of variance, Student's t test for independent samples and Duncan's post hoc test. The level of statistical significance was established at p \ 0.05. Analysis of the results showed a difference in the distribution of surface body temperatures in boys and girls depending on the studied area. The highest values were recorded in the trunk area, and the lowest in the lowerlimb area. Statistical analysis demonstrated that in both groups there was a statistically significant decrease in post-exercise temperatures. The results revealed greater efficiency of thermoregulation processes during restitution in girls, because the values obtained in all measurement fields in Test 3 were higher than the pre-exercise values. In Tests 2 and 3, differences between the sexes were reported mainly in the upper-limb area.

This study aimed to evaluate the differences in patient satisfaction between telerehabilitation and traditional face-to-face rehabilitation and to identify the impact of personality traits on patient satisfaction with the remote form of rehabilitation. Eighty participants with musculoskeletal pain were recruited for the study. The telerehabilitation group (n = 40) completed a single remote session of rehabilitation, whereas the traditional rehabilitation group (n = 40) completed a single face-to-face session. After therapy, each participant was asked to complete a tailored satisfaction survey using Google Forms. The Health Care Satisfaction Questionnaire (HCSQ) and the International Personality Item Pool-Big Five Markers-20 (IPIP-BFM-20) were used as outcome measures. Considering the results of patient satisfaction with healthcare service, there were no statistically significant differences between telerehabilitation and traditional rehabilitation groups in the total HCSQ score and its subscales. For the complete HCSQ, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and extraversion were essential predictor variables, accounting for 51% of the variance in patient satisfaction. In conclusion, there were no differences in patient satisfaction between telerehabilitation and traditional rehabilitation groups. In the telerehabilitation group, higher agreeableness levels and lower conscientiousness and extraversion level could predict patients’ satisfaction with telerehabilitation.