Content - Volume 39, Issue 5

Rehabilitation medicine is entering a new era, based on the knowledge that the central nervous system has a substantial capacity for repair and regeneration. This capacity is used in 3 distinct but overlapping situations: (i) routine housekeeping throughout life (i. e. taking care of normal wear-and-tear); (ii) older age, when functional reserves of various kinds are depleted, resulting in cogniti ...

Objective: To investigate whether the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF) Core Sets for low back pain encompass the key functional problems of patients. Design: Cross-sectional evaluation of patient-centred problems with low back pain. Subjects: A total of 402 patients living in the UK recruited into a randomized clinical trial. Methods: Patients with acut ...

Objective: The Neck Disability Index, the Northwick Park Pain Questionnaire, the Copenhagen Neck Functional Disability Scale and the Neck Pain and Disability Scale are widely used scales for assessing neck pain or disability. The aim of this study was to determine the most suitable scale for Turkish patients with neck pain. Methods: All scales were translated into Turkish, administered to 102 pa ...

Objective: Previous investigations suggest little association between clinical findings and radiographic degenerative findings. However, the association between degenerative changes and neck function has not been investigated. Design: A cross-sectional study. Subjects: Data were collected from 179 female office workers aged 25–53 years with chronic neck pain who were referred for institution ...

Objective: To evaluate the effects of a cognitive behavioural training programme and a physical activity programme for patients with stress-related illnesses. Design: In a randomized controlled study, patients were allocated randomly to 1 of 3 groups, where group 1 participated in a cognitive behavioural training programme, group 2 participated in a physical activity programme, and group 3, the ...

Objectives: To compare the efficacies of an intramuscular stimulation technique and 0. 5% lidocaine injection to trigger points in myofascial pain syndrome. Participants: Forty-three people with myofascial pain syndrome of the upper trapezius muscle. Interventions: Twenty-two subjects were treated with intramuscular stimulation and another 21 with 0. 5% lidocaine injection at all the trigger p ...

Objective: To assess upper extremity functioning of children with unilateral transverse upper limb reduction deficiency, using standardized instruments, and to investigate their validity and reliability. Design: Cross-sectional study. Subjects: Twenty subjects aged 4–12 years; 9 prosthetic users and 11 non-users. Methods: The Assisting Hand Assessment, Unilateral Below Elbow Test, Prosthet ...

Objective: To compare standardized and functional aphasia tests in patients after acute stroke. Design: Data were collected at baseline and at 6 months in 2 prospective single-centre studies: one observational study (study I, n = 119) and one randomized trial of moclobemide vs placebo (study II, n = 89). Subjects: Patients with aphasia after acute stroke. Methods: Degree of aphasia was exami ...

Objective: To assess the occurrence and risk factors for complications following spinal cord injury during and after inpatient rehabilitation. Design: Multicentre longitudinal study. Subjects: A total of 212 persons with a spinal cord injury admitted to specialized rehabilitation centres. Methods: Assessments at the start of active rehabilitation (n = 212), 3 months later (n = 143), at disch ...

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate a speech synthesizer with respect to patterns of use and satisfaction, during a 2-month trial at home, and the usefulness of the word prediction function. Design: Prospective study. Participants: Of the 24 patients with severe dysarthria recruited, 10 completed the study. Five patients had cerebral palsy, 3 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, one loc ...

Objective: To investigate cognitive function, symptoms, disabilities and life satisfaction of patients with mild traumatic brain injury who accepted consultation one year post-trauma. Design: Prospective study. Patients: Sixty-nine patients (16 accepted the consultation offered, 53 declined). Methods: At follow-up, the patients answered questionnaires about symptoms, disabilities (RHFUQ) and ...

Objective: The aims of this study were to investigate the time-course of depressive mood in patients with coronary artery disease during a secondary prevention rehabilitation program, and to analyse how different pre-treatment levels of depressive mood during a treatment phase were related to the degree of lifestyle change at 36 months follow-up. Subjects: The study group comprised 109 of the or ...

We report the case of a 31-year-old man who had mild traumatic brain injury as a result of an accident at the age of 24 years. Seven years after the trauma, at the age of 31 years, he had a lower verbal intelligence quotient than performance intelligence quotient by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Revised, and frontal lobe dysfunction, for example, difficulty in maintaining or changing t ...