Zaheen Ahmed Iqbal

• MPT (Orthopedics)
• PhD Scholar at Education University of Hong Kong

Studies in the literature show that jaw and neck regions are linked anatomically, biomechanically and neurologically. Voluntary clenching has been shown to improve muscle strength and performance of various motor tasks. Information from the neck sensory-motor system is reported to be important for posture. Hence it is reasonable to believe that act...

Background and aims: Role of the neck and jaw sensory motor system in control of body balance has been established. Tongue is an integral part of jaw sensory motor system and helps in execution of purposeful and precise motor tasks like eating, drinking and speaking. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the possible effects of tongue position...

[Purpose] The job of secondary school teachers involves a lot of head down posture as frequent reading, assignment correction, computer use and writing on a board put them at risk of developing occupational related neck pain. Available studies of neck pain experienced by teachers are limited. The purpose of this study was to determine whether train...

Background: Health professions like dentistry, nursing and physical therapy have been reported at high risk for developing workrelated musculoskeletal disorders. Results of studies conducted in these occupational groups may help formulate prevention strategies. However, no such data among physical therapists has been reported in India. Material a...

Background and aims: There is an important role of the neck sensory motor system in control of body posture and balance, and it is reasonable to believe that the jaw sensory motor system can directly and indirectly influence the modulation of the postural control system. The purpose of this study was to evaluate possible effects of dynamic jaw pos...

Background: Variability in running mechanics, termed running variability, reflects the adaptability of the locomotor system to dynamic environments. Due to inconsistent findings in the literature, there is a research gap in understanding its role in injury. Objectives: This scoping review explores running variability’s influence on injury susceptib...

Background The knowledge and utilization of manual therapy in treating knee osteoarthritis (OA) may help explain the effective utilization of manual therapy for managing knee OA. Little is known about the knowledge and utilization of manual therapy in the management of knee OA by physical therapists (PTs) in Saudi Arabia. The present study aimed to...

Background: Treadmills have been used in laboratories to assess various measures related to walking and running. However, there has been some skepticism regarding their reliability as a representation of outdoor running. While marathon running has gained popularity as a form of physical activity, there have been few studies examining stride-to-str...

BACKGROUND: Trolley bags have gained popularity among students, but there is limited research comparing them to backpack-style school bags. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to compare how carrying a backpack versus a trolley bag affects the activity of trunk and lower limb muscles in secondary school students. METHODS: Electromyographic activity was mea...

Purpose] The job of secondary school teachers involves a lot of head down posture as frequent reading , assignment correction, computer use and writing on a board put them at risk of developing occupational related neck pain. Available studies of neck pain experienced by teachers are limited. The purpose of this study was to determine whether train...

Inertial measurement units (IMU) are commonly used for gait analysis however subjects need to carry several IMU that affect their performance and cause restrictions in analysis. In order to minimize such restrictions, our study investigated if we can predict lower-limb kinematics using just one single sensor. In the first phase it was investigated...

Background: Inhibition of the suboccipital muscle group is shown to increase the flexibility of hamstring muscles. Reversely, stretching of the hamstring muscles is shown to change the pressure pain thresholds over the masseter and upper trapezius muscles. There appears to be a functional link between the neuromuscular system of the head and neck,...

Sedentary lifestyle and consumption of high-fat foods have become widespread, especially in the urban population. This leads to a reduction in lean body mass and increased body fat. The correlation between body fat indices and low back pain has been less explored and documented. The aim of this study was to identify the correlation between the perc...

Background: This study was done to see the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among information technology (IT) professionals in Saudi Arabia, the risk factors associated with them, their consequences, and to propose some preventive measures. Material and methods: A self-administered online questionnaire that included questions...

Background: In comparison with the people with normal sight, the mean center of gravity (COG) velocity is significantly higher among blind people. A strong relationship has been shown between jaw and neck sensorimotor and postural control. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of different static and dynamic jaw positions on postur...

The feasibility of prediction of same-limb kinematics using a single inertial measurement unit attached to the same limb has been demonstrated using machine learning. This study was performed to see if a single inertial measurement unit attached to the tibia can predict the opposite leg’s kinematics (cross-leg prediction). It also investigated if t...

Background: The consumption of herbal medicines (HMs) is increasing worldwide, especially in developing countries. This study attempts to investigate and evaluate the patient's perception with regard to the security of HMs, their attitudes towards the concomitant use of HMs with modern medicines, and counseling about their use. Design: Self-admi...

Background: Adolescents and ethnic subgroups have been identified at high risks of overweight and its associated complications. Although some studies have investigated overweight, obesity, nutritional status, physical activity, and associated factors among Saudi students, no studies have examined these characteristics among non-Saudi students or c...

Background: Teaching is one of the professions where incidence and prevalence of neck pain is high. Prolonged use of computers, which has further increased due to online teaching amid pandemic, is known to cause neck pain and alter posture, while people with forward head posture (FHP) are prone to develop neck pain and related disability. Research...

Background. Neck pain (NP) is a common work-related disorder, with high prevalence in the profession of teaching. The daily duties of a school teacher involve head-down postures while reading and writing, which expose them to the risk of developing NP. Deep cervical flexor (DCF) muscles have been reported to have lower endurance in patients with ce...

Background Jaw and neck systems have been shown to be functionally related and changes in either system can modulate gross motor functions, such as posture control. It remains to be seen if any change in jaw position can affect fine motor skills. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of resting, open and clenched jaw positions on...

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Hyperinflation of the lungs leads to a remodeling of the inspiratory muscles that causes postural deformities and more labored breathing. Postural changes include elevated, protracted, or abducted scapulae with medially rotated humerus,...

Background: Ankle sprains are common among physically active individuals, especially among athletes. Majority of those who suffer ankle sprains have residual symptoms including pain, episodes of giving way, compromised proprioception and neuromuscular control, and re-injury leading to chronic ankle instability. The aim of this study was to see the...

Background: Delivering a child is a very stressful experience for women. Pregnancy and labor entail complex events that are unique to each individual female. The management of labor pain is often done using analgesics and anesthesia, which have been shown to have some side effects. More comprehensive data are needed to provide clinically significan...

Background: Physical activity (PA) has been shown to develop better fitness and body function in children. Various studies have shown that as the age of students increases, its correlation with school achievement decreases. Different hormonal changes during adolescence make it difficult to adjust in his/her environment, causing stress. To the best...

Background: Health professionals, including physical therapists (PTs), are known to migrate for better jobs, as well as for personal and professional development. However, this involves risks of maladjustment, discrimination, and exploitation. We conducted this study to investigate the experiences of overseas trained PTs in Saudi Arabia (SA) and th...

Abstract Background Total knee replacement is a common operative procedure to improve pain, function, and quality of life in patients with end stage knee osteoarthritis. The current study aimed to compare simultaneous bilateral versus unilateral total knee replacement on pain intensity and recovery of function. Methods A total of 80 patients (bilat...

Myofascial pain syndrome, thought to be the main cause of neck pain and shoulder muscle tenderness in the working population, is characterized by myofascial trigger points (MTrPs). This study aimed to examine the immediate and short-term effect of the combination of two therapeutic techniques for improving neck pain and muscle tenderness in male pa...

Background Total knee replacement is a common operative procedure to improve pain, function, and quality of life in patients with end stage knee osteoarthritis. The current study aimed to compare simultaneous bilateral versus unilateral total knee replacement on pain intensity and recovery of function. Methods A total of 80 patients (bilateral 50,...

Background: Being overweight at a young age is a predictor of developing obesity and related complications later in adulthood, posing a high risk to public health. Various ethnic subgroups have been identified as having a higher prevalence of overweight or obese. Saudi Arabia is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, where the expatriat...

Background: Jaw sensory-motor system has been shown to affect static balance of the body. It would be interesting to know whether it can influence dynamic balance as well. The objective of this study is to examine the influence of different jaw positions on dynamic balance using the Y-balance test. Methods: Eighty healthy male participants aged...

Background: Total knee replacement (TKR) is a common operative procedure to improve pain, function, and quality of life in patients with severe grade knee osteoarthritis. The current study aimed to compare bilateral versus unilateral total knee replacement (TKR) on pain intensity and recovery of function. Methods: A total of 80 patients (bilateral...

Background The visual system enables the brain to assess information regarding the position of the body in space. Congenital or acquired blindness leads to the development of abnormal sensory‐motor interactions that results in development of typical musculoskeletal deformities and gait patterns that cause disability. Diabetes and related complicati...

Background Total knee replacement is a common operative procedure to improve pain, function, and quality of life in patients with end stage knee osteoarthritis. The current study aimed to compare simultaneous bilateral versus unilateral total knee replacement on pain intensity and recovery of function. Methods A total of 80 patients (bilateral 50,...

Background Although various studies have shown the effect of vigorous physical activity on academic achievements, no studies have investigated the effect of vitamin E levels on academic performance. The present study aimed to assess the association between physical activity, vitamin E levels and total antioxidant capacity on the academic performanc...

Objective: To investigate the effect of resting jaw and maximum voluntary clenching on neck flexor and extensor muscle endurance. Design: Neck flexor and extensor endurance was measured in a college health clinic in 85 male college students in two test positions: resting jaw (control) and maximum voluntary clenching. Results: Mean neck flexor...

Background Patient satisfaction (PS) is a key measure of the quality and outcome of healthcare systems which reflects patients’ experiences. The purpose of this study was to assess overall PS with outpatient physical therapy (PT) care in Saudi Arabia and identify associated characteristics and components. Methods Four hundred patients who received...

Normal respiration is a very intricate function that comprises mechanical as well as nonmechanical components. It is shown to be affected by various factors including age, lifestyle, disease, and change in posture. With the increased use of hand held devices, everyone is prone to poor sitting postures like forward head posture. The purpose of this...

Objective Several scales are commonly used for assessing pain intensity. Among them, the numerical rating scale (NRS), visual analog scale (VAS), and verbal rating scale (VRS) are often used in clinical practice. However, no study has performed psychometric analyses of their reliability and validity in the measurement of osteoarthritic (OA) pain. T...

Background: People clench their teeth to activate facial, neck and abdominal muscles when they need to generate heavy muscle force against large resistance like lifting heavy objects, in order to gain possible ergogenic advantage. These are termed as remote voluntary contractions. Aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of voluntary teeth cle...

Background: Shoulder dysfunction is a major cause of musculoskeletal pain in general population. A variety of shoulder disorders can cause a reduction in shoulder range of motion and subsequent disability. Objective: To investigate the relationship between the shoulder pain, range of motion, and disability in patients with shoulder dysfunction....

Objectives: To investigate the effect of different induced head-neck-jaw postures on head-neck relocation error among healthy subjects. Methods: 30 healthy adult male subjects participated in this study. Cervicocephalic kinesthetic sense was measured while standing, habitual sitting, habitual sitting with clenched jaw and habitual sitting with f...

Objective: To investigate the effects of local vibration on muscle strength in healthy adults. Data sources: The electronic databases PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus and Web of Science were searched using a combination of the following keywords: vibration, vibration therapy, power, maximal voluntary contraction, performance, rate of force development and...

Background: Swallowing is a systematic process. Any structural, physiological or neurological disturbance in this process may cause dysphagia. Although there are studies that report head/neck movements during mastication, there are fewer studies that show the effect of different head/neck postures on difficulty while swallowing. Objectives: To obse...

Background: Estimation of handgrip strength (HGS) is routinely used by clinicians and epidemiologists for objective assessment of functional status of hand and upper extremity. It is also used as an indirect indicator of overall physical strength and health status in variety of clinical situations and chronic general medical conditions. Objective...

Background: Cumulative trauma disorder (CTD) is a term for various injuries of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems that are caused by repetitive tasks, forceful exertions, vibrations, mechanical compression or sustained postures. Although there are many studies citing incidence of CTDs, there are fewer articles about its etiology, pathology an...

Low back pain (LBP) is a common health problem. Professions like physical therapy (PT), involving frequent lifting, bending, or standing, are at risk for developing LBP. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of work-related LBP and factors associated with and consequences of work-related LBP among physical therapists in Riyadh...

Objective: To investigate the effect of physiotherapy on pain and recovery of physical function after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods: 80 patients (male 29, female 51) in the age group of 48–80 years (mean 63.28, SD 9.44) undergone TKA (bilateral 50, unilateral 30) participated in the prospective interventional study. All the participants re...

[Purpose] Over the years physiotherapy has been recognized as a popular mode of treatment that decreases the disability and dependency rate of patients. However, there is still a need for its recognition in multidisciplinary health care structures. If a physician were well aware of how a physical therapist could help with treatment if patients and...

[Purpose] The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of pre-operative and post-operative physical therapy versus post-operative physical therapy alone on pain and recovery of function after total knee arthroplasty. [Subjects and Methods] Fifty patients (18 males and 32 females) ranging in age from 48 to 80 years (mean 63.28, SD 9.44) pa...

[Purpose] Overweight and obesity are major risk factors for poor health, especially in children. Reduced physical activity, prompted by a sedentary lifestyle, is a major contributor. Hence, it is important to assess physical activity using standardized methods in public health to identify the risks associated with obesity. There have been no recent...

Background Complementary and alternate medicine (CAM) has been defined as a group of diverse medical and healthcare systems, practices, and products not presently considered part of conventional medicine (CM). Studies in different countries have revealed a geographical difference in the knowledge about CAM therapies, especially among medical school...

Information about head orientation, position, and movement with respect to the trunk relies on the visual, vestibular, extensive muscular, and articular proprioceptive system of the neck. Various factors can affect proprioception since it is the function of afferent integration, and tuning of muscular and articular receptors. Pain, muscle fatigue,...

[Purpose] The visual system is one of the sensory systems that enables the body to assess and process information about the external environment. In the absence of vision, a blind person loses contact with the outside world and develops faulty motor patterns, which results in postural deficiencies. However, literature regarding the development of s...

Mechanical low back pain is an activity related back pain Although in most cases etiology is unknown, it consists of non specific injury of lumbar column The pain is “mechanical” – that it varies with physical activity (e.g. Prolonged sitting, bending forward) and with time. It has been estimated as one of the most important disabilities in the wo...

It is reasonable to believe that activation of the jaw sensory-motor system has the potential to modulate the postural control system through neck, directly or indirectly

Purpose: The aims of this study were to translate the numeric rating scale (NRS) into Arabic and to evaluate the test-retest reliability and convergent validity of an Arabic Numeric Pain Rating Scale (ANPRS) for measuring pain in osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. Methods: The English version of the NRS was translated into Arabic as per the transl...

LATEST RESEARCH TRENDS IN PHYSICAL THERAPY AND REHABILITATION IN THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA Zaheen Ahmed Iqbal, PT, MPT (Ortho) Research Associate, Rehabilitation Research Chair, King Saud University, Riyadh, KSA Abstract Physical therapy and rehabilitation have been recognized as dynamic professions with established evidence based clinical appli...

[Purpose] This study was performed to assess the effect of daily sitting time during media consumption on physical fitness, total energy expenditure (TEE), and body composition indices of Saudi school children. [Subjects and Methods] A total of 180 healthy Saudi school students (8–18 years) were included in this study. Sitting time, total energy ex...

Background: Watching television has been widely associated with various health and psychological outcomes in children. Excessive intake of carbonated, sweetened beverages and fast foods, inadequate intake of fruits & dairy products; and reduced levels of physical activity also pose risk to healthy lifestyle among youth. However, limited literature...

We adapted the reduced Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) index for the Arabic language and tested its metric properties in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). One hundred and twenty-one consecutive patients who were referred for physiotherapy to the outpatient department were asked to answer the Arabic version of...

[Purpose] To report perceptions about the importance and use of therapeutic massage as a treatment modality among physical therapists working in Saudi Arabia. [Subjects and Methods] A 21-item structured questionnaire was used to assess various domains including the demographic and professional characteristics of physical therapists and their percep...

[Purpose] To review the physical therapy educational program model, professional curriculum, and gender representation at major universities, as well as the quality and scope of physical therapy practice in Saudi Arabia. [Methods] Information regarding course curriculum, gender representation, and the quality and scope of physical therapy practice...

[Purpose] Musculoskeletal disorders are common causes of work-related disability in different professions involving the frequent practice of lifting, stooping, twisting, prolonged sitting, or standing. The dental profession is one such profession. Our aim was to determine the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among dental profess...

Scoliosis is the deviation in the normal vertical spine. Although there are numerous studies available about treatment approaches for scoliosis, the numbers of studies that talk about its etiology and pathology are limited. Aim of this study was to discuss the different types of scoliosis; its curves and etiological theories; and to note their impl...

The Patellofemoral joint, a part of the knee joint complex has often been described as the most researched small joint in the body, producing pain & disability far out of proportion to its size. The term “PATELLOFEMORAL PAIN SYNDROME” can be used to describe the clinical entity of activity induced pain, pain on physical examination of the PF joint...

Vestibular physical therapy is a specialized exercise based intervention for management of symptoms associated with vestibular dysfunction that manifests itself as dizziness and imbalance related to position or movement of the body. The aim of this review is to evaluate and summarize the efficacy of vestibular physical therapy for the treatment of...

Patellofemoral pain is a common symptom and managing it is a challenge, in part because of lack of consensus regarding its cause and treatment. Contributing factors include overuse, overload, biomechanical problems or muscular dysfunction. The initial treatment plan is to control pain, activity modification, and quadriceps strengthening exercises....