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Background: Alterations in mental functions are among the most frequent manifestations of stroke that have a direct impact on the patient’s functionality. The objective of this study was to analyze the relationship of sociodemographic variables with the executive functions (EFs) of participants with right middle cerebral artery (MCA) stroke. Methods: A cross-sectional observational case-control study was conducted at the State Center for Brain Damage in Madrid, Spain. Fifty-eight subjects were recruited and divided into two groups. Each participant was administered the following: the FIM+FAM Functional Assessment Measure, the Lawton and Brody scale, The Trail-Making Test, the Zoo Map Test and the Hanoi Tower. Results: Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were identified between participants with ischemic stroke and control in functional and EF functions, as well as between participants with hemorrhagic stroke and control. No statistically significant differences were found in the experimental group between subjects who had sustained ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. No significant associations were identified between the variables age, gender and education level in relation to functionality and executive functions (p > 0.05) in people with stroke. Conclusion: People who have suffered a right cerebral artery stroke have deficiencies in the EFS, resulting in poorer performance of the activity of daily living, compared to healthy subjects of the same age, gender and education level. In the correlational analysis of the stroke participants, no significant associations were identified between the variables gender, age and education level in relation to functionality and EF.

Background: The Nintendo Switch® (NS) is the ninth video game console developed by Nintendo®. Joy-Cons® are the primary game controllers for the NS® video game console, and they have an infrared motion camera sensor that allows capturing the patient’s hands without the need to place sensors or devices on the body. The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of the NS®, combined with a conventional intervention, for improving upper limb (UL) grip muscle strength, coordination, speed of movements, fine and gross dexterity, functionality, quality of life, and executive function in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. Furthermore, we sought to assess satisfaction and compliance levels. Methods: A single-blinded, randomized clinical trial was conducted. The sample was randomized into two groups: an experimental group who received treatment based on Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training® for the NS® (20 min) plus conventional rehabilitation (40 min), and a control group who received the same conventional rehabilitation (60 min) for the ULs. Both groups received two 60 min sessions per week over an eight-week period. Grip strength, the Box and Blocks Test (BBT), the Nine Hole Peg Test (NHPT), the QuickDASH, the Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale (MSIS-29), the Trail Making Test (TMT), and the Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT) were used pre- and post-treatment. Side effects and attendance rates were also recorded. Results: Intragroup analysis showed significant improvements for the experimental group in the post-treatment assessments for grip strength in the more affected side (p = 0.033), the BBT for the more (p = 0.030) and the less affected side (p = 0.022), the TMT (A section) (p = 0.012), and the QuickDASH (p = 0.017). No differences were observed for the control group in intragroup analysis, but they were observed in the NHPT for the more affected side (p = 0.012). The intergroup analysis did not show differences between both groups. Conclusions: Our results show that an eight-week experimental protocol, after using Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training® and the right-side Joy-Con controller for the NS®, combined with a conventional intervention, showed improvements in grip strength, coordination, fine and gross motor function, executive functions, and upper limb functionality in the experimental group. However, no differences were observed when both groups were compared in the intergroup analysis. The addition of Brain Training® for the NS® for the upper limb rehabilitation did not show side effects and was rated with a high satisfaction and excellent compliance in people with MS. Trial registration: This randomized controlled trial has been registered at ClinicalTrials Identifier: NCT04171908, November 2019.

New technologies in neurorehabilitation is a wide concept that intends to find solutions for individual and collective needs through technical systems. Analysis through citation networks is used to search scientific literature related to a specific topic. On the one hand, the main countries, institutions, and authors researching this topic have been identified, as well as their evolution over time. On the other hand, the links between the authors, the countries, and the topics under research have been analyzed. The publications analysis was performed through the Web of Science database using the search terms “new technolog*,” “neurorehabilitation,” “physical therapy*,” and “occupational therapy*.” The selected interval of publication was from 1992 to December 2020. The results were analyzed using CitNetExplorer software. After a Web of Science search, a total of 454 publications and 135 citation networks were found, 1992 being the first year of publication. An exponential increase was detected from the year 2009. The largest number was detected in 2020. The main areas are rehabilitation and neurosciences and neurology. The most cited article was from Perry et al. in 2007, with a citation index of 460. The analysis of the top 20 most cited articles shows that most approach the use of robotic devices and brain–computer interface systems. In conclusion, the main theme was found to be the use of robotic devices to address neuromuscular rehabilitation goals and brain–computer interfaces and their applications in neurorehabilitation.

Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder associated with motor and nonmotor symptoms. Drooling, one of the nonmotor symptoms, can be present in 70–80% of patients with PD. The aim of this paper is to study the characteristics of PD patients with drooling compared to those without in terms of age, gender, disease duration, stage of the disease, swallowing difficulties, and health-related quality of life, methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted. The sample was divided into two groups: PD with drooling (n = 32) and PD without drooling (n = 30). Age, gender, disease duration and Hoehn &amp, Yahr (H &amp, Y) stage, Sialorrhea Clinical Scale for Parkinson’s Disease (SCS-PD), the 10-item Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10), and the 39-item Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) were compared between groups, Results: 62 individuals with PD, 40 men and 22 women (mean age 73 ± 8 years), were included. Overall, 32 patients reported drooling, and 30 did not exhibit it. The ANCOVA found significant differences between groups for the EAT-10 score (0.83, 95% CI = 5.62–9.03, p = 0.016) and SCS-PD score (1.48, 95% CI = 0.86–6.81, p &lt, 0.001). Analysis of the PDQ-39 scores revealed no significant differences between groups for the PDQ-39 total score (p &gt, 0.057) and in all subscales. The inclusion of gender, age, disease duration, and H &amp, Y as covariates did not influence the results (all p &gt, 0.05). Conclusions: drooling is related to swallowing difficulties assessed with EAT-10 but not with health-related quality of life assessed with PDQ-39 in PD patients with drooling compared to PD patients without it. Age, gender, duration of the disease, and the H &amp, Y state of PD patients with and without drooling seem to be similar.

Falls represent a major public health problem in the elderly population. The Timed Up &amp, Go test (TU &amp, Go) is the most used tool to measure this risk of falling, which offers a unique parameter in seconds that represents the dynamic balance. However, it is not determined in which activity the subject presents greater difficulties. For this, a feature-based segmentation method using a single wireless Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) is proposed in order to analyze data of the inertial sensors to provide a complete report on risks of falls. Twenty-five young subjects and 12 older adults were measured to validate the method proposed with an IMU in the back and with video recording. The measurement system showed similar data compared to the conventional test video recorded, with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.9884 and a mean error of 0.17 &plusmn, 0.13 s for young subjects, as well as a correlation coefficient of 0.9878 and a mean error of 0.2 &plusmn, 0.22 s for older adults. Our methodology allows for identifying all the TU &amp, Go sub&ndash, tasks with a single IMU automatically providing information about variables such as: duration of sub&ndash, tasks, standing and sitting accelerations, rotation velocity of turning, number of steps during walking and turns, and the inclination degrees of the trunk during standing and sitting.