Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults
Physiological hand tremors appear to be one of the most common types of tremors that occur during the lifespan. Activities most prominently affected by hand tremors are those involving the movement of small muscles, such as fine motor skills, which in turn could be influenced by several factors, inc...
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| Format: | Article |
| Langue: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-05-01
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| Collection: | Applied Sciences |
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| Accès en ligne: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/11/4467 |
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| author | Olga Papale Francesca Di Rocco Emanuel Festino Viviana Gammino Cristina Cortis Andrea Fusco |
| author_facet | Olga Papale Francesca Di Rocco Emanuel Festino Viviana Gammino Cristina Cortis Andrea Fusco |
| author_sort | Olga Papale |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Physiological hand tremors appear to be one of the most common types of tremors that occur during the lifespan. Activities most prominently affected by hand tremors are those involving the movement of small muscles, such as fine motor skills, which in turn could be influenced by several factors, including lateral dominance. The difference in skills due to lateral dominance is defined as inter-limb imbalance or inter-limb asymmetry. When this asymmetry is attributed to the tremor and the difference in tremor between the limbs, it could be defined as the inter-limb asymmetry of tremors. This study aimed to evaluate the acute effects of wobble-board hand exercise training on the inter-limb asymmetry of tremors. Thirty-two (eighteen males and fourteen females) participants (age: 25.2 ± 2.6 years, weight: 63.9 ± 10.5 kg, height: 1.66 ± 0.8 m, and BMI: 22.8 ± 2.3 kg/m<sup>2</sup>) were involved in the study. Before (PRE) and after (POST) the wobble-board hand exercises, postural hand tremor was evaluated using a tri-axial accelerometer fixed under the palm. Recordings were taken for 15 s. One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to examine the effects of hand exercises on inter-limb (dominant vs. non-dominant) asymmetry of tremor in testing time (PRE vs. POST) in relation to sex (male vs. female). The statistical significance was set at <i>p</i> < 0.05. Significant differences were found in physiological hand tremors between limbs (dominant vs. non-dominant) in the PRE evaluation (<i>p</i> = 0.03) independently from sex while no differences were found in the POST evaluation. A significant difference emerged in the PRE evaluation for males (<i>p</i> = 0.04) and females (<i>p</i> = 0.03) in relation to the testing time and preferred hand. This difference was no longer present in the POST evaluation. In conclusion, wobble-board hand exercises could represent an effective strategy to reduce inter-limb asymmetry. These results emphasize the importance of task-specific training to maximize the reduction in inter-limb asymmetry of tremors following wobble-board hand exercises. |
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| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
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| spelling | doaj.art-f0894a8b02c949d7a18f5e3d16f18e542024-06-13T14:54:52ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172024-05-011411446710.3390/app14114467Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young AdultsOlga Papale0Francesca Di Rocco1Emanuel Festino2Viviana Gammino3Cristina Cortis4Andrea Fusco5Department of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Viale dell’Università, 03043 Cassino, ItalyDepartment of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Viale dell’Università, 03043 Cassino, ItalyDepartment of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Viale dell’Università, 03043 Cassino, ItalySport and Exercise Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Viale dell’Università, 03043 Cassino, ItalyDepartment of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Viale dell’Università, 03043 Cassino, ItalyPhysiological hand tremors appear to be one of the most common types of tremors that occur during the lifespan. Activities most prominently affected by hand tremors are those involving the movement of small muscles, such as fine motor skills, which in turn could be influenced by several factors, including lateral dominance. The difference in skills due to lateral dominance is defined as inter-limb imbalance or inter-limb asymmetry. When this asymmetry is attributed to the tremor and the difference in tremor between the limbs, it could be defined as the inter-limb asymmetry of tremors. This study aimed to evaluate the acute effects of wobble-board hand exercise training on the inter-limb asymmetry of tremors. Thirty-two (eighteen males and fourteen females) participants (age: 25.2 ± 2.6 years, weight: 63.9 ± 10.5 kg, height: 1.66 ± 0.8 m, and BMI: 22.8 ± 2.3 kg/m<sup>2</sup>) were involved in the study. Before (PRE) and after (POST) the wobble-board hand exercises, postural hand tremor was evaluated using a tri-axial accelerometer fixed under the palm. Recordings were taken for 15 s. One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to examine the effects of hand exercises on inter-limb (dominant vs. non-dominant) asymmetry of tremor in testing time (PRE vs. POST) in relation to sex (male vs. female). The statistical significance was set at <i>p</i> < 0.05. Significant differences were found in physiological hand tremors between limbs (dominant vs. non-dominant) in the PRE evaluation (<i>p</i> = 0.03) independently from sex while no differences were found in the POST evaluation. A significant difference emerged in the PRE evaluation for males (<i>p</i> = 0.04) and females (<i>p</i> = 0.03) in relation to the testing time and preferred hand. This difference was no longer present in the POST evaluation. In conclusion, wobble-board hand exercises could represent an effective strategy to reduce inter-limb asymmetry. These results emphasize the importance of task-specific training to maximize the reduction in inter-limb asymmetry of tremors following wobble-board hand exercises.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/11/4467fine motor skillseye-hand coordination exercisewobble boardinter-limb asymmetry |
| spellingShingle | Olga Papale Francesca Di Rocco Emanuel Festino Viviana Gammino Cristina Cortis Andrea Fusco Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults Applied Sciences fine motor skills eye-hand coordination exercise wobble board inter-limb asymmetry |
| title | Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults |
| title_full | Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults |
| title_fullStr | Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults |
| title_full_unstemmed | Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults |
| title_short | Do Hand Exercises Influence Physiological Hand Tremor? An Observational Cohort Study on Healthy Young Adults |
| title_sort | do hand exercises influence physiological hand tremor an observational cohort study on healthy young adults |
| topic | fine motor skills eye-hand coordination exercise wobble board inter-limb asymmetry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/11/4467 |
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