Background: Increasing the range of motion in joints is considered to be one of the most long term concerns in the treatment of cerebral palsy (CP). Objectives:The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of using whole body vibration (WBV) as a new therapeutic approach, with stretching exercises on the range of motion in lower extremities in children with CP. Methods:In this single-blind clinical trial, 20 children aged 4 to 12 years were enrolled. Participants were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. Control group received only passive static stretching exercise and experimental group received passive static stretching with WBV. Exercises were performed 3 times a week for 6 weeks. To collect data, Goniometry, modified Ashworth scale and 6 Minute Walk Test were used. Results:The results of this study indicated that, stretching with WBV, increases active range of motion in hip flexion, abduction and ankle dorsal flexion and also can improve speed of walking in children with CP. Conclusions:According to the findings, the use of WBV can be considered as an effective treatment in increasing the range of motion and walking speed in CP children.

Background: Stuttering is potentially a socio communicational problem, which has negative effects on individuals' mental and emotional health and other aspects of life. Recognizing the quality of life (QOL) dimensions in adults who stutter can be useful in treatment planning and preventing later mental, emotional and social disorders. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the QOL and its relationship with stuttering severity in adults who stutter. Patients and Methods:This analytic-descriptive study was performed on 78 adults (61 males and 17 females) who stuttered and 78 normal control cases in Mashhad City, Iran. Short-form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire of QOL was used to collect data and the percentage of syllables stuttered (%SS) was determined in a spontaneous speech sample as a frequency measurement tool. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare data between the groups and ANOVA test was also used to evaluate the correlation between stuttering severity and QOL dimensions. Results: This study showed a significant difference between the groups in mean scores of QOL, general and emotional health, social and physical functions, vitality and role limitations made by physical and emotional problems (P < 0.05). No significant difference was found in pain between the groups and there was no significant relation between %SS and dimensions of QOL (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Stuttering has negative effects on different dimensions of QOL among individuals. Thus, it is necessary to pay special attention to its prevention and treatment before it is developed into a completed and progressive condition.

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Background: Some variables, such as age, gender, regional and dialectical differences influence speech tempo. Men and younger individuals speak faster than women and the elderly. Therefore, these variations should be considered when assessing speaking rate. Objectives: Since different accents influence speaking rates and there is no previous study investigated speech tempo with respect to regional and accent differences in Iran, and given that the elderly are more prone to problems influencing speaking rate, the present study was done to compare speech tempo and speaking rate in two different accents, namely Tehrani and Semnani, and to investigate some related factors. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 200 elderly women selected via convenience sampling method. Speech tempo, speaking rate, verbal fluency, and cognition scores were compared using an independent-samples t-test. Pearson’s correlation coefficient test was used to assess correlations between speaking rate and level of education, Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA), and verbal fluency scores. Results: No significant difference was found in speech tempo between the studied accents (P = 0.13). Speaking rate was significantly slower in the Tehrani accent than the Semnani one (P = 0.04). The Tehrani elderly obtained significantly less scores in verbal fluency and MoCA ((P ≤ 0.001) and (P = 0.04), respectively. In both groups, speaking rate had a significant correlation with verbal fluency and MoCA scores but not with level of education. Conclusions: Although, our results showed no difference in speech tempo between the studied accents, the Tehrani elderly unexpectedly spoke more slowly meaning that they paused more while speaking. There was a relationship between faster speaking, better verbal fluency, and cognitive performance.