Lviv State University of Physical Culture

Background Recent assessments of Ukraine's wartime health and rehabilitation systems highlight critical shortages in trained rehabilitation personnel. In response, Ukraine has undergone rapid expansion of rehabilitation services through health system reform. These changes created an urgent need to strengthen physical therapy education and align curricula with national and international competency standards. Despite urgent workforce needs, limited evidence exists describing structured, competency-based program reform models for health professions education in active conflict settings. This study provides a feasible framework for reflective educational reform in crisis-affected contexts. Methods This multiple-case design with cross-case synthesis describes implementation of the Academic Program Reflection Tool (APRT) across four Ukrainian universities offering physical therapy education. Program leadership teams engaged in a two-year reflective review process involving self-assessment, curriculum mapping, mentoring, and in-person workshops. Two members of each leadership team attended the in-person workshops. Data sources included institutional self-assessments, revised program documents, worksheets, and workshop transcripts. Findings were analyzed descriptively to identify themes related to curriculum development, assessment practices, faculty capacity, student progression, and resource constraints. Results Institutions reported improved clarity in program philosophy, learning outcomes, and alignment with competency frameworks. Curriculum mapping revealed gaps in areas such as treatment for conflict-related injuries, global health, and continuing professional development. Participants identified limitations in assessment validity, reliance on lecture-based teaching, variability in clinical education practices, faculty shortages, and constrained institutional resources. The APRT process supported development of quality improvement plans and strengthened local leadership capacity for ongoing program reform. Conclusions This case study demonstrates the feasibility and educational value of structured program review in strengthening physical therapy education within a low-resource, conflict-affected setting. The APRT provided a framework for aligning curricula with competency-based education principles while supporting local ownership of reform. Findings may inform efforts in rehabilitation and health professions education in other low resource countries.

Armed conflicts, like the Russian invasion of Ukraine, devastated healthcare systems and amplified chronic disease burdens. This study aimed to unveil links between environmental and social factors and chronic illnesses during crises. This study uniquely combined individual-level data on chronic diseases, living conditions, and winter preparedness in Ukraine during crisis conditions. A multivariable logistic regression model, using age- and gender-adjusted analyses, revealed associations, while machine learning models employed rigorous feature selection and data balancing. Six algorithms predicted disease outcomes using validated metrics, and interpretable insights. Surveying 1552 adults during the Russia-Ukraine war, we show that chronic disease prevalence is strongly linked to conflict-driven living conditions. Poor indoor environments disrupted access to medicines, food, transport, and care, and economic shocks consistently were consistently associated with higher disease prevalence/risk. Machine-learning models identified distinct environmental and socioeconomic predictors across hypertension, coronary heart disease, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and arthritis, enabling conflict-specific vulnerability mapping. This study reveals links among environment, socioeconomic status, and healthcare access in the context of chronic disease risks during armed conflicts, highlighting the need for targeted policy implementation to improve healthcare accessibility and reduce health disparities. Armed conflicts such as the Russia–Ukraine war have severely disrupted healthcare systems and increased the long-term chronic diseases risks. In this study, we analyzed data from Ukrainian adults during the war to assess how environmental, social, and economic conditions are associated with chronic disease burden. We found that disrupted living conditions, damaged infrastructure, reduced access to healthcare and medicines, and socioeconomic instability were associated with a higher prevalence of chronic diseases. We further identified distinct and overlapping risk profiles across diseases, reflecting heterogeneous vulnerability among conflict-affected populations. Overall, these findings improve understanding of how conflict-related living conditions influence the burden of chronic diseases and may inform policies aimed at strengthening healthcare access, reducing health inequalities, and supporting humanitarian planning during crises. Bukhari1 et al., analyze survey data from 1552 adults in Ukraine, combining logistic regression and machine learning to examine how living conditions, healthcare access and socioeconomic factors relate to chronic diseases during war. Poor housing conditions, disrupted access to medicines and services, and economic hardship are associated with chronic diseases, while machine learning highlights potential environmental and socioeconomic factors linked to hypertension, coronary heart disease, asthma, COPD and arthritis

This scoping review aimed to synthesize the methodological characteristics of electrical stimulation techniques for managing sports-related pain, summarize their effects on pain intensity, and identify evidence gaps. Following PRISMA-ScR guidelines, a search was conducted on June 27, 2025, across PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Eligible studies were peer-reviewed trials involving competitive athletes (all ages, sexes, and performance tiers) treated with transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), intramuscular electrical stimulation (IMES), or percutaneous needle electrolysis (PNE) for sports-related pain. During screening, we also included trials of related electrical stimulation modalities (e.g., interferential current (IFC), excitomotor neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES), and TECAR) when they were explicitly used to treat sports-related pain in competitive athletes. Study designs included randomized controlled trials, crossover trials, and retrospective cohort studies. Risk of bias was assessed using RoB 2 and ROBINS-I tools. Eight studies met inclusion criteria (from 9,087 non-duplicated records). Participants were competitive athletes (Tier 1–4; mean age 21.0 ± 2.9 to 35.2 ± 9.8 years), with 62.5

Introduction and aims Dentists work under sustained visual and manual demands that commonly require cervical flexion, forward trunk inclination, repetitive upper-limb activity and prolonged static sitting or standing. These exposures are associated with work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), particularly in the neck, back, shoulders and wrist-hand region. This review summarizes the burden, clinical pattern,and occupational drivers of MSDs in dentists and proposes a structured, evidence-informed self-management framework. Methods A structured narrative review was conducted using PubMed/MEDLINE and citation tracking, with priority given to systematic reviews, meta-analyses, scoping reviews, randomized trials and key observational studies. Studies were eligible if they addressed the prevalence, anatomical distribution, occupational drivers, ergonomics, prevention, or conservative management of MSDs relevant to dental practice. Results Dental-specific evidence consistently showed a high burden of MSDs in dentists. A meta-analysis reported a pooled overall MSD prevalence of 78.4%, while pooled regional prevalence estimates in Western dental professionals were 58.5% for the neck, 56.4% for the lower back, 43.1% for the shoulder, and 41.1% for the upper back. Carpal tunnel syndrome was also clinically relevant, with pooled prevalence estimates ranging from 9.87% in dentists to 15% in broader dental health care personnel. Dental-specific intervention evidence most strongly supported ergonomic optimisation, visual magnification and workplace ergonomic modification. Direct evidence for dentist-specific exercise-based protocols remained limited, whereas broader rehabilitation literature supported exercise-based care for chronic spinal pain and adjunctive conservative approaches for selected mild wrist-hand symptoms. Lower-limb and pedal-related complaints appeared plausible but under-investigated. Conclusion Dentists represent a high-risk occupational group for MSDs. A structured, evidence-informed framework that prioritises ergonomic optimisation and adds feasible self-management strategies may assist prevention and early symptom management in routine dental practice. Clinical Relevance The proposed framework organises current evidence into a practical and low-cost model that may be implemented in routine dental settings without specialised equipment.

Modern Ukraine faces an unprecedented social and medical challenge caused by the full-scale Russian aggression. As of July 2025, the number of veterans exceeds 1.5 million people, of whom more than 109,000 have disabilities as a result of the war, and after the end of hostilities, this figure may rise to 4–5 million. Over half of veterans (52.4%) require health promotion services, while key issues remain psycho-emotional instability, impaired physical functioning, social isolation, and a deficit of inclusive and motivating environments for long-term recovery. Existing rehabilitation approaches do not always provide sufficient levels of engagement and intrinsic motivation, which limits their sustainability over time. Adaptive golf is considered an innovative tool for comprehensive rehabilitation that combines measured physical activity, motor control development, cognitive concentration, emotional regulation, and social interaction, creating a space for dignity, autonomy, and return to active life. International experience confirms the effectiveness of adaptive golf in working with veterans; however, as of the end of 2024, only 21 adaptive sports clubs operate in Ukraine, and none of them specialize in golf. Research objective: to identify current directions for implementing adaptive golf practices for war veterans globally and prospects for their implementation in Ukraine. Material and methods. The research material consisted of publications, analytical reports of international organizations (USGA, EDGA, The R&A), regulatory documents, program materials, and official resources of adaptive golf projects for people with disabilities and war veterans. Methods of theoretical analysis and generalization of scientific literature, historical-logical method, and comparative analysis were used. Results. It was established that adaptive golf development progressed from individual initiatives of the 1960s to systematic international programs. The 1980s became a turning point with the creation of first specialized organizations: NAGA (1986), Adaptive Golf Foundation (1995), EDGA (1997). A key regulatory breakthrough was the introduction of Rule 25 in 2023, which automatically legalized adaptations for four disability categories. The educational EDUGOLF project (2020-2023) demonstrated 20-30% growth in participation of people with disabilities. Nine leading veteran programs were identified (PGA HOPE, SMGA, Range Fore Hope, Next 18 Golf Camps, GIVE, Veterans Golf Program, Help for Heroes, Mates4Mates, True Patriot Love) that combine golf activities with psychological support and physical rehabilitation and serve as an effective tool for war veteran rehabilitation. Main challenges: high equipment costs, limited access to courses, and need for coach education. Conclusions. Adaptive golf has formed as an independent direction combining rehabilitation, recreational, and social integration functions. For Ukraine, implementation of international experience is a strategic opportunity through adaptation of existing programs, use of educational resources, attraction of grant support, and integration into European networks. It is recommended to start with pilot programs based on existing golf clubs in partnership with rehabilitation centers and create a national coordination structure.