Content - Volume 44, Issue 7

Objective: To determine 5-year mortality and its association with baseline characteristics and functional status 6 months post-stroke for patients who received inpatient rehabilitation. Design: A prospective rehabilitation-based cohort study. Subjects: A total of 532 consecutive stroke patients from 4 European rehabilitation centres. Methods: Predictors were recorded on admission. Barthel In ...

Objectives: Given the burden associated with vehicle-related trauma, there is interest in time and cost effective methods of providing information to assist recovery. This systematic review aims to address the question: “Do targeted early information interventions improve outcomes following vehicle­-related injuries for persons of working age?” Data Sources: Ovid Medline, EMBASE, PsychINFO a ...

Objectives: To characterize a spinal cord injury (SCI) population from the 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China; to evaluate functional outcomes of physical rehabilitation interventions; to assess potential determinants of rehabilitation effectiveness; and to assess medical complications and management outcomes. Methods: A total of 51 earthquake victims with SCI were enrolled and underwent rehabilit ...

Objective: To determine the effect of botulinum toxin A on spasticity and somatosensory evoked potentials of hand muscles in patients who have undergone cerebrovascular accident. Design: Preliminary, prospective, before-after study design. Patients: Six subjects prospectively followed after application of botulinum toxin A in the rehabilitation department of a university hospital. Methods: A ...

Objective: To determine 5-year mortality and its association with baseline characteristics and functional status 6 months post-stroke for patients who received inpatient rehabilitation. Design: A prospective rehabilitation-based cohort study. Subjects: A total of 532 consecutive stroke patients from 4 European rehabilitation centres. Methods: Predictors were recorded on admission. Barthel In ...

Objective: To investigate the correlation between hemiplegic shoulder pain factors during the acute and chronic stages of stroke recovery. Design: A prospective longitudinal study. Subjects: Seventy-six stroke patients with hemiplegic shoulders. Methods: Hemiplegic shoulder pain and clinical, physical, and sonography results were recorded at admission and during both acute (before discharge) ...

Objective: To develop and evaluate tools for the audit of spasticity management with botulinum toxin. Design: Audit tools to assess the organisation of services and process of care were developed with a consensus process. The tools were piloted across 8 services using a retrospective case note audit. Inter-rater reliability was assessed, using percentage agreement and kappa scores. Clinicians in ...

Objective: To explore internal consistency and correlations between perceived ability, performance and perceived importance in a preliminary selection of self-reported items representing the activity/participation component of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Design: Structured interview study. Subjects: Fifty-five Swedish adolescents and adults wit ...

Objective: To examine the relevance and completeness of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) comprehensive core set for breast cancer using patient reported disability in an Australian cohort. Method: Cross-sectional community survey of 85 women following definitive treatment for primary breast cancer. Everyday living problems reported by participants (usi ...

Objective: To investigate whether an online occupational postural and exercise intervention reduced patients’ overall risk status for chronicity in subacute non-specific low back pain compared with conventional treatment, and to determine whether changes in risk of chronicity correlate with changes in specific outcomes (i. e. Functional Status and QoL) for low back pain. Design: Prospective, s ...

Objective: To investigate the association between rehabilitation timing and the occurrence of post-total knee arthroplasty complications and related medical service utilization. Methods: Data from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database from 2003–2006 were used to perform a retrospective study on patients who received their initial total knee arthroplasty during 2004–2005 (a t ...

Objective: To increase knowledge of health services utilization and related factors in adult acquired major upper-limb amputees. Design: Population-based cross-sectional study conducted in Norway. Subjects: Twohundred and twentyfour adult acquired major upper-limb amputees (57. 4% response rate). Mean age was 53. 7 years, 83. 5% were men and mean post-amputation time was 24. 0 years. Methods ...

Objective: The aim of this trial was to compare the efficacy of triamcinolone acetonide and procaine HCl with that of placebo in the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome. Design: This prospective, randomized placebo-controlled trial included 57 patients (90 median nerves). Ninety median nerves were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups: group 1 was injected with 1 ml 0. 09% saline, group 2 was injec ...

Objective: Balance between flexor and extensor muscle activity is essential for optimal function. The purpose of this pilot study was to compare the relationship between maximum finger flexion force and maximum finger extension force in women with rheumatoid arthritis and healthy women. Methods: Twenty healthy women (median age 61 years) and 20 women with rheumatoid arthritis (median age 59. 5 y ...

Abstract is missing (Commentary)