Content - Volume 40, Issue 7

The first step in the assessment of patients with gait abnormalities in physical and rehabilitation medicine settings is a clinical examination based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disabilities and Health. Body structure, activities and participation, and environmental factors (physical and human factors) must all be assessed. Qualitative and quantified assessments of gait are ...

Objective: To develop a comprehensive measure of Early Physical Functioning (EPF) post-stroke quantified through Rasch analysis and conceptualized using the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF). Design: An observational cohort study. Subjects: A cohort of 262 subjects (mean age 71. 6 (standard deviation 12. 5) years) hospitalized post-acute stroke. Methods: ...

Background: Stroke is a leading cause of long-term disability in the USA; however, we have an incomplete understanding of how stroke affects long-term quality of life. Methods: We report here findings from focus groups with 9 long-term stroke survivors and 6 caregivers addressing patients' post-stroke quality of life. Results: Key themes identified by patients were: social support, copi ...

Objective: The aims of this study were: to follow the course of recovery of motor function following acute stroke, as assessed by the Physiotherapy Clinical Outcome Variables Scale (COVS), and; to investigate the ability of this instrument to predict length of hospital stay, discharge destination and future home facility. Methods: In this prospective longitudinal study, COVS was registere ...

Objective: To determine the effect of ankle-foot orthoses on walking efficiency and gait in a heterogeneous group of children with cerebral palsy, using barefoot walking as the control condition. Design: A retrospective study. Methods: Barefoot and ankle-foot orthosis data for 172 children with spastic cerebral palsy (mean age 9 years; hemiplegia: 21, diplegia: 97, and quadriplegia: 54) ...

Objective: We tested the hypothesis that physically active people with spinal cord injury do not have increased subclinical atherosclerosis compared with an age-matched able-bodied group. Methods: Subjects comprised 28 wheelchair athletes with spinal cord injury (mean age 22 (standard deviation (SD) 3) years) and 24 recreationally active aged-matched able-bodied control participants (mean age ...

Objective: We studied balance control in patients with cervical spondylosis, on the hypothesis that ataxia and changes in postural responses occur concurrently as a consequence of structural problems in the cervical cord. Subjects and patients: Seventeen patients and 17 healthy subjects were recruited. Based on magnetic resonance imaging, the patients were divided into 2 groups, with (n=9) and w ...

Objectives: The number of people in Western countries on long-term sick-leave and disability pension due to musculoskeletal complaints and psychological health problems is increasing. The main objective of this study was to examine whether fear-avoidance beliefs, illness perceptions, subjective health complaints, and coping are prognostic factors for return to work after multidisciplinary vocation ...

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of unspecific neck pain and low back pain at a given time (1990–91) with respect to physical and social functioning and role limitations due to emotional problems 12 years later. Methods: A rural male study population (2351 individuals) was established in 1989 and a first survey conducted in 1990–91. A follow-up survey was performe ...

Objective: The aims of this study were: (i) to classify subgroups according to the degree of pain intensity, depression, and catastrophizing, and investigate distribution in a group of patients with chronic whiplash-associated disorders; and (ii) to investigate how these subgroups were distributed and inter-related multivariately with respect to consequences such as health and quality of li ...

Objective: To determine changes in physical and social function during a prolonged preoperative waiting period and at 3 months after total knee arthroplasty. Subjects: Forty-three patients were evaluated on the day that surgery was decided, the day before surgery, and 3 months afterwards. Methods: Knee pain and function were assessed using a visual analogue scale and a functional assessment sy ...

Objectives: Workers who carry out modified work during sick leave due to musculoskeletal complaints seem to return to full-capacity work earlier than colleagues not given modified work. This study evaluates whether modified work during sick leave also influences the recurrence of a new episode of sick leave. Methods: Questionnaires on physical and psychosocial workload, musculoskeletal complaint ...

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture for fibromyalgia. Methods: Fifty-eight women with fibromyalgia were allocated randomly to receive either acupuncture together with tricyclic antidepressants and exercise (n=34), or tricyclic antidepressants and exercise only (n=24). Patients rated their pain on a visual analogue scale. A blinded assessor evaluated both the mean pressure pai ...

Objective: To assess the inter-tester reliability of the New Mobility Score in patients with acute hip fracture. Design: An inter-tester reliability study. Subjects: Forty-eight consecutive patients with acute hip fracture at a median age of 84 (interquartile range, 76-89) years; 40 admitted from their own home and 8 from nursing homes to an acute orthopaedic hip fracture unit at a univ ...