Content - Volume 40, Issue 9

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is, according to Sackett et al. (1), the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients. Individual clinical expertise is integrated with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research in order to achieve the best possible care for the patient. There are 3 factors in ...

Objective: To assimilate the published evidence for the effectiveness of multidisciplinary rehabilitation following acquired brain injury in adults of working age. Design: The evidence derived from 2 contrasting approaches to systematic evaluation of the published literature is compared. Methods: A synthesis of best evidence compiled from a Cochrane Review of randomized controlled trials is co ...

Objective: To assess sports participation in young adults with myelomeningocele and its association with personal, disease-related and psychosocial factors, physical activity and fitness. Design: Cross-sectional study. Subjects: Fifty-one persons (26 males) with myelomeningocele , mean age 21. 1 (standard deviation 4. 5) years. Methods: We assessed self-reported sports participation, ambulat ...

Objective: To evaluate vitality and fatigue in post-polio patients, and the relative contributions of physiological and psychological parameters to the level of vitality. Design: Multi-centre study. Subjects: One hundred and forty-three patients with post-polio syndrome. Methods: Inventories of background, quality of life, fatigue and sleep quality were used. Pain was evaluated using a visual ...

Objective: To examine effectiveness of standardized occupational therapy and physical therapy assessments in detecting functional changes and predicting clinical improvement in patients with suspected normal pressure hydrocephalus undergoing cerebrospinal fluid drainage. Design: Cohort study. Patients: Eighty-seven patients admitted to an inpatient neurology unit for elective cerebrospinal fluid ...

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the correlation between 1-legged bicycling and the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) in subjects post-stroke. A further aim was to analyse the relationship between specific stroke impairment and walking endurance. Participants: Thirty-four subjects (mean age 60 (standard deviation (SD) 4. 1) years; mean time post-stroke 62 (SD 33) months) with stroke ...

Objective: To investigate the cross-cultural validity of international Dutch-English comparisons when using the Dutch Rivermead Mobility Index (RMI), and the intra-test reliability and construct validity of the Dutch RMI. Methods: Cross-cultural validity was studied in a combined data-set of Dutch and English patients undergoing rehabilitation after stroke, who were assessed with the Dutch versi ...

Objective: A follow-up of accident rate and driving patterns of patients 6–9 years after brain injury. Design: Postal questionnaire sent to patients with brain injury who were assessed consecutively in the period 1997–2000 and who were re-issued. Subjects: A total of 93 persons, 69 men and 24 women, mean age 57 years, average 9 years post-injury, 65 persons with brain injury after cerebrovas ...

Objectives: To investigate the applicability of the Swedish Occupational Fatigue Inventory and its ability to identify different dimensions of fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis with varying degrees of disease severity, and the correlation of each of its 5 dimensions with the Fatigue Severity Scale. Design: An observational, prospective study. Subjects: Two hundred and nineteen outpatient ...

Objective: To evaluate the effect of a single cystoscopic injection of botulinum toxin to the external urethral sphincter in treating detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia. Design: An open treatment trial with pre- and post-treatment evaluations. Subjects: A total of 20 suprasacral spinal cord injured patients with pure detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia. Methods: A single dose of 100 I ...

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a night-time hand positioning splint in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Methods: Fifty patients with rheumatoid arthritis were divided randomly into 2 groups. The study group used a night-time splint starting at baseline, while the control group used the splint only during evaluations. All patients attended ev ...

Objective: To investigate the feasibility of cervical spine mobilization in elderly dementia patients with dysphagia, and its effect on swallowing capacity. Methods: Fifteen nursing home residents (9 women, 6 men, age range 77–98 years) with severe dementia (median Mini Mental State Examination score=8/30, percentile (P)25–75=4–13) and known dysphagia participated in a randomized controlle ...

Objective: Camptocormia, or bent spine syndrome, is an acquired postural disease leading to lumbar kyphosis observed when the patient stands up. Classic orthoses and physiotherapy programmes provide little correction and are often poorly tolerated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and tolerance of a new orthosis combined with physiotherapy for treating camptocormia. Method ...

Objective: To investigate test-retest reliability and internal consistency of a new instrument for evaluation of mobility device interventions. Material and Methods: The instrument comprised 4 scales and one summed index. Two test-retest interviews involved 147 mobility device users (mean age 60 years) with a broad range of functional limitations, living at home. Results: For 2 scales and the s ...

Objective: Coenzyme Q10 supplementation leads to increased muscle metabolism in patients with post-polio syndrome. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of resistance training in combination with oral supplementation with coenzyme Q10 in patients with post-polio syndrome regarding muscle strength and endurance as well as functional capacity and health-related quality of life. Desig ...

Objective: To study the effects of 6 months exercise training on ventricular remodelling and autonomic tone in patients with acute myocardial infarction and percutaneous coronary intervention. Design: Single-blinded randomized control trial. Participants: Sixty patients with acute myocardial infarction who had undergone percutaneous coronary intervention. Methods: The exercise group followed a ...

Objective: To highlight an unusual cause of autonomic dysreflexia in tetraplegia and present a review of the literature. Study design: Case report of a patient in Stoke Mandeville Hospital, UK. Methods: A 33-year-old woman with C6 incomplete tetraplegia presented with signs and symptoms of autonomic dysreflexia attributed to breastfeeding. Results: Cessation of breastfeeding was effective in ...

M. Clare Taylor, pp. 224, 2007. Price £25. 99. ISBN: 9781405137003, ISBN10: 1405137002. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, UK. This second edition of the book Evidence-based Practice for Occupational Therapists does not concentrate merely on the basic skills of evidence-based practice (EBP) in occupational therapy; it also explores the implementation and development of an evidence-based culture wit ...