A 12-week Nordic Walking training routine improves shoulder mobility and reduces tenderness in the following muscles: trapezius pars descendens and middle trapezius, infraspinatus and latissimus dorsi, in female office workers.

This study determined relationships between age, BMI and cranio-vertebral angle (CVA) (independent variables) and stiffness and elasticity of sternocleidomasteoid [SCM] and upper trapezius [UT] (dependent variables) muscles in sitting posture in 95 women across adult life. Moreover, a stepwise regression was performed to determine to what extent the dependent variables are explained by age, BMI and CVA. Age was moderately correlated with BMI (r = 0.41), and both age and BMI were moderately negatively correlated with CVA (r = −0.54 and −0.55, respectively). High (r = 0.73) and moderate (r = 0.53) linear relationships were present between age and logarithmic decrement (inversely related to elasticity) and stiffness of SCM muscle, respectively. Low (r = 0.36) and moderate (r = 0.47) relationships were present between age and logarithmic decrement and stiffness of UT muscle, respectively. Age accounted for 53% variance in elasticity and 28.5% variance in stiffness of SCM, and for 13% variance in elasticity and 22% variance in stiffness of UT muscle. Introduction of BMI but not CVA to the model explained the variance of these parameters by additional 0–8%. Among the studied factors age is the major correlate of stiffness and elasticity of neck muscles across the adult life.

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II.

Whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) has been frequently used to supplement the rehabilitation of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study was to compare the effect of WBC and traditional rehabilitation (TR) on clinical parameters and systemic levels of IL-6, TNF-α in patients with RA. The study group comprised 25 patients who were subjected to WBC (−110°C) and 19 patients who underwent a traditional rehabilitation program. Some clinical variables and levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were used to assess the outcomes. After therapy both groups exhibited similar improvement in pain, disease activity, fatigue, time of walking, and the number of steps over a distance of 50 m. Only significantly better results were observed in HAQ in TR group (p < 0.05). However, similar significant reduction in IL-6 and TNF-α level was observed. The results showed positive effects of a 2-week rehabilitation program for patients with RA regardless of the kind of the applied physical procedure.