Functional Pathologies of the Musculoskeletal System in Physiotherapy Students (FUNPAMUS)

Occurrence and Characteristics of Functional Pathologies of the Musculoskeletal System in Physiotherapy Students and the Possibility of Influencing Them

This study map the occurrence of functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system in students of the bachelor's program of physiotherapy of the Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, and aim on improvement of them.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Low Back Pain, Postural
• Intervention / Treatment: Diagnostic test: Differential diagnostic

Detailed Description

The aim of this study is to map the occurrence of functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system in students of the bachelor's program of physiotherapy of the Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, and to examine their postural functions. Another goal is to teach the students of the experimental group how to remove functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system and how to change their motor behaviour and postural functions so that the development of functional disorders no longer occurs.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 44
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Czechia
  • Prague, Czechia
    • Department of rehabilitation, Third Faculty of Medicine

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years to 26 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Bachelor's study of physiotherapy at the Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University
• The presence of functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system (verification by means of Trigger Points)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Serious cardiovascular or orthopedic dysfunction
• Neurological disease
• Reduced cognitive functions complicating examination and subsequent therapy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Screening
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Double

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: individual outpatient physiotherapy; individual outpatient physiotherapy (7 times in two and a half months, approx. 90 minutes) aimed at correcting functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system assessed by differential diagnosis (removal of trigger points, stretching of shortened muscles and mobilization of joint blockages) and changing of motor program that led to the occurrence of the functional disorder by means of Motor Programmes Activating Therapy	Diagnostic test: Differential diagnostic; Physiotherapy aimed at correcting functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system assessed by differential diagnosis (removal of trigger points, stretching of shortened muscles and mobilization of joint blockages)
Active Comparator: Without changing the current habits; It will not change the existing habits. At the same time, however, these are physiotherapy students who will participate in the classes. Their motor behaviour can thus be influenced in a natural way.	Diagnostic test: Differential diagnostic; Physiotherapy aimed at correcting functional pathologies of the musculoskeletal system assessed by differential diagnosis (removal of trigger points, stretching of shortened muscles and mobilization of joint blockages)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Changes in Trigger Points at 3 months	Local hypertonic change in muscle function arising as a manifestation of pathogenic tension, 0 no trigger point, 2 maximal tiger point (higher value, worse function)	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in the Foot posture index at 3 and 15 month	Clinical examination of the foot type ranging from significantly pronated (values 6 - 12) to significantly supinated (values from -1 to -12) one according to the 6-item, higher value (both negative or positive) means worse function.	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months), Follow up (at 15 months).
Change in Foot morphology and flexibility at 3 and 15 month	examination by means of the full foot 3D scanner Footscan® and the software 3D scanner 7.7 while sitting and standing still. Arch high index defines two kinds of pathologies: hypermobility under 0,6, norm 0,7 - 0,8, rigidity 0,9 - 1,3	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months), Follow up (at 15 months).
Change in Postural stability at 3 and 15 month	evaluation of the level of postural stability using the total path of displacement of the centre of pressure of the body on the mat in mm and the maximum displacement obtained in the latero-lateral and in the anteroposterior direction in mm (lower number means better function), measurement using the RS Footscan® tensiometric plate, higher value means worse function.	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months), Follow up (at 15 months).
Change in the subtalar joint flexibility at 3 and 15 month	mobility of the subtalar joint during the initial phase of walking (software evaluation after walking barefoot on the Footscan® tensiometric plate). Under 5.5° means normal range of pronation and normal function. Higher values mean worse function and pathologic pronation during initial phase of gait.	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months), Follow up (at 15 months).
Change in the foot progression angle at 3 and 15 month	rotation of the foot during walking (software evaluation after walking barefoot on the Footscan® tensiometric plate). Normal angle 0-5.4°, in-toeing (inwards rotation) under 0°, out-toeing (outward rotation) above 5.5°.	Pre-assessment (baseline testing), Post-assessment (immediately after the end of three months), Follow up (at 15 months).

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Charles University, Czech Republic
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Kamila Rasova, Third Faculty of Medicine

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): November 1, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 30, 2025
• Study Completion (Actual): May 30, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 14, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 14, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): September 16, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): January 21, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 19, 2026
• Last Verified: January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Physiotherapy; Motor Activity; Trigger Point Pain, Myofascial
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Muscular Diseases; Back Pain; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Behavior; Signs and Symptoms; Myofascial Pain Syndromes; Low Back Pain; Motor Activity
• Other Study ID Numbers: 29072022

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No