Occupational therapy (OT) is a client-centered health profession focused on enhancing individuals’ ability to perform meaningful activities and daily tasks, particularly for those recovering from injury, illness, or disability. As a core component of rehabilitation, it promotes independence, well-being, and quality of life through personalized, goal-oriented interventions. Identifying and measuring the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the human–computer interaction (HCI) within OT is critical for improving therapeutic outcomes and patient engagement. Despite AI’s growing significance, the integration of AI-driven HCI in OT remains relatively underexplored in the existing literature. This scoping review identifies and maps current research on the topic, highlighting applications and proposing directions for future work. A structured literature search was conducted using the Scopus and PubMed databases. Articles were included if their primary focus was on the intersection of AI, HCI, and OT. Out of 55 retrieved articles, 26 met the inclusion criteria. This work highlights three key findings: (i) machine learning, robotics, and virtual reality are emerging as prominent AI-driven HCI techniques in OT; (ii) the integration of AI-enhanced HCI offers significant opportunities for developing personalized therapeutic interventions; (iii) further research is essential to evaluate the long-term efficacy, ethical implications, and patient outcomes associated with AI-driven HCI in OT. These insights aim to guide future research efforts and clinical applications within this evolving interdisciplinary field. In conclusion, AI-driven HCI holds considerable promise for advancing OT practice, yet further research is needed to fully realize its clinical potential.

Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic brought significant challenges across governmental, industrial, and social systems. Additionally, numerous studies have reported a sharp increase in both mental health issues and musculoskeletal disorders worldwide. This study aimed to investigate whether a specific exercise program could alleviate neck and upper back pain symptoms and improve mood state among healthcare and office employees during the post-COVID-19 period. Materials and Methods: This was an unblinded (open label) randomized controlled trial (both the participants and the researchers knew which treatment or intervention was being administered). In total, 40 healthcare employees from a public hospital and 98 remote office employees, all of whom reported neck and upper back pain, were randomly assigned to an experimental (EG) and control group (CG). The experimental groups underwent the same exercise protocol, while their corresponding control groups underwent the assessments only. Pain assessment using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and mood state using the Feeling Scale (FS) questionnaires of the participants were recorded at baseline (pre-intervention) and immediately following the exercise intervention period of 6 weeks (post-intervention). The intervention consisted of 18 exercise sessions conducted over a 6-week period, with remote office workers participating online and healthcare workers attending exercise sessions on site (at the hospital). Statistical analysis was performed using non-parametric Mann–Whitney and Wilcoxon tests, as appropriate. Results: Following the six-week intervention, the percentage of workers in the EG reporting pain decreased significantly (from 75% to 45% for healthcare workers and from 54% to 25% for office employees), whereas no change was observed for their corresponding control groups. Similarly, the mood state of the EGs significantly improved compared with the control groups, as measured between pre- and post-intervention sessions. Conclusions: The COVID-19 period exacerbated stress and musculoskeletal strain, particularly for workers in demanding occupational roles. To mitigate these effects, exercise programs that can be applied while at work should be implemented, as they are effective in enhancing mood and managing neck pain in employees with physical exertion.

Background: There is limited information on injury patterns in Step Aerobic Instructors (SAI) who exclusively execute “step” aerobic classes. Objective: To record the type and the anatomical position in relation to diagnosis of muscular skeletal inju

Background/Objectives: Chronic stroke survivors often regain walking speed but continue to exhibit heightened gait variability, increasing fall risk. This study investigated the effects of a 12-week moderate-to-high intensity muscle strengthening program on gait parameters and their variability in stroke survivors, without incorporating gait-specific training. Methods: Stroke survivors participated in a twice-weekly, 45–60 min strengthening program using Pilates equipment. Spatiotemporal gait parameters were measured before and after the intervention using 3D motion capture. Walking speed, cadence, step/stride length, step width, and various temporal parameters were analyzed for both paretic and non-paretic limbs, along with their coefficients of variation (CV). Correlation analyses were performed to understand the relationships between parameter changes. Results: Eleven patients (age 61 ± 7.4 years, 9 males) participated in the study. Significant improvements were observed in walking speed for both paretic (0.61 to 0.69 m/s, p = 0.032) and non-paretic limbs (0.62 to 0.69 m/s, p = 0.024). Step length significantly increased in the paretic limb (0.36 to 0.41 m, p = 0.042) with a substantial reduction in variability (CV: 19.91% to 14.99%). Cadence increased significantly in the non-paretic limb (89.24 to 92.01 steps/min, p = 0.024). Correlation analysis revealed distinct adaptation patterns between limbs, with speed improvements strongly associated with stride length in both limbs, but with step length only in the non-paretic limb. Conclusions: A moderate-to-high intensity strengthening program, even without direct gait training, can improve walking speed and reduce movement variability in chronic stroke survivors. The intervention predominantly influenced the spatial parameters, with modest changes in the temporal aspects, suggesting that enhanced force production and control primarily affect step execution while preserving temporal gait patterns.

In recent years the number of people who exercise every day has increased dramatically. More precisely, due to COVID period many people have become recreational runners. Recreational running is a regular way to keep active and healthy at any age. Additionally, running is a popular physical exercise that offers numerous health advantages. However, recreational runners report a high incidence of musculoskeletal injuries due to running. The healthcare industry has been compelled to use information technology due to the quick rate of growth and developments in electronic systems, the internet, and telecommunications. Our proposed intelligent system uses data mining algorithms for the rehabilitation guidance of recreational runners with musculoskeletal discomfort. The system classifies recreational runners based on a questionnaire that has been built according to the severity, irritability, nature, stage, and stability model and advise them on the appropriate treatment plan/exercises to follow. Through rigorous testing across various case studies, our method has yielded highly promising results, underscoring its potential to significantly contribute to the well-being and rehabilitation of recreational runners facing musculoskeletal challenges.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of a 7-week shoulder specific strength training program additional to tennis training sessions on the service velocity of junior tennis players. Initially 60 junior tennis players (29 boys and 31 girls) with at least 2 years of tennis experience and never followed a routine strength program, volunteered to participate in the study. All the subjects followed a regular tennis training session (75 min). The subjects were randomly assigned into three groups: i) group-A, which practiced in addition 15 min service after the tennis session, ii) group-B which practiced a 7-week strength training program (15 min per session, 3 times per week) after the tennis session, and iii) a group-C, control group, which did not follow any extra programs after the tennis session. Two-way repeated measures analysis of variance was performed to detect differences in each group before and after the experimental period. The independent variable was the group (two experimental groups with different training protocol and the control group with only tennis training), and the repeated factor was the ìtestî (pre and post test, before and after the training period). Statistical significance was accepted at p<.05. It was measured an overall significant quantitative improvement on service performance while, the qualitative findings showed significant improvement in service technique only in group A.