Rehabilitation and Therapy Commons^™

Does Biofeedback Increase Gait Velocity In Children With Cerebral Palsy?, Kara L. Steck

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “Does biofeedback increase gait velocity in children with cerebral palsy (CP)?”.

Study Design: A systematic review of three randomized control trials (RCTs) published between 2014 and 2019.

Data Sources: All three RCTs were found using PubMed. Each article was published in English in peer reviewed journals and selected based on their applicability to the clinical question, provide a new technique in CP rehabilitation, and include patient-oriented outcomes (POEMS).

Outcome Measured: The outcome measured was gait velocity before and after treatment using Tekscan software, 3D motion analysis …

Is Cryotherapy With Exercise Therapy More Effective Than Exercise Therapy Alone In Reducing Symptoms Associated With Ankylosing Spondylitis?, Michelle Hand

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this systematic EBM review is to determine “Is Cryotherapy with Exercise Therapy More Effective than Exercise Therapy Alone in Reducing Symptoms Associated with Ankylosing Spondylitis?”

Study Design: A comprehensive review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

Data Sources: PubMed database was used to find all three articles referenced in this review. Each article was published in a peer-reviewed journal and published after 2010.

Outcome Measured: The outcome considered for this review was subjective reduction in disease activity measured using the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) which consists of 6 questions regarding clinical manifestations of …

Does Spaced Retrieval Therapy Help Improve Quality Of Life For Individuals With Dementia?, Simone E. Fleary

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this systematic EBM review is to determine “Does Spaced Retrieval Therapy Help Improve Quality of Life for Individuals with Dementia?”

Study Design: A systemic review of three peer-reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCT) published in English between 2016-2017.

Data Sources: All peer-reviewed articles were selected using PubMed. All articles were published in English and selected based on relevance to the clinical question. Exclusion criteria excluded studies with combined intervention methods.

Outcome Measured: Assessment of instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) was determined using the IADL task score assessed by the recruiter. Improvement of hyperphagic behavior assessed by …

Does Dance Therapy During Active Labor Reduce Labor Pain?, Sarah E. Naber

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine “Does dance therapy during active labor decrease labor pain?”

STUDY DESIGN: A systematic review of two randomized control trials and a cohort study that were published in English between 2014 and 2020.

DATA SOURCES: Three studies were obtained from PubMed, Alt HealthWatch, and AMED. They were all published in peer-reviewed journals and chosen based on their relevance to the clinical question proposed.

OUTCOMES MEASURED: The main outcome measured in all three studies is pain during active labor. Pain was measured in all studies using the visual analog scale (VAS). …

Does Administration Of An Anterior Suprascapular Nerve Block Improve Post-Operative Pain And Reduce Opioid Consumption When Compared To Traditional Interscalene Nerve Plexus Block In Adults Undergoing Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery?, Tyler Trobetsky

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “Does administration of an anterior suprascapular nerve block improve post-operative pain and reduce opioid consumption when compared to traditional interscalene nerve plexus block in adults undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery.”

Study Design: A review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in English between 2017-2020.

Data Sources: All three articles used are peer-reviewed RCTs that were discovered using PubMed. The articles were evaluated and selected based on their ability to answer the proposed clinical question.

Outcome Measured: All three articles measured and compared post-operative pain using numerical …

Does Hippotherapy Improve Gross Motor Function In Children With Cerebral Palsy?, Victoria I. Bockius

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “Does hippotherapy improve gross motor function in children with cerebral palsy?”.

STUDY DESIGN: A systematic review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs), with one being a randomized crossover trial. All three were published between 2015 and 2018.

DATA SOURCES: Three RCTs published in peer-reviewed journals were chosen from PubMed. The studies were selected based on their relevance to the clinical question.

OUTCOMES MEASURED: The outcome measured was improvement in gross motor function. Either hip adductor spasticity using Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) or the Gross Motor Function …

Is Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (Tens) An Effective Treatment For Pain Caused By Knee Osteoarthritis?, Zuhra Nassery

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “is TENS an effective treatment for pain caused by knee osteoarthritis?”.

Study Design: A systematic review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published between 2012 and 2019.

Data Sources: All RCTs were discovered utilizing PubMed. The articles were published in English in peer-reviewed journals and selected based on applicability and pertinence to the clinical question as well as the incorporation of patient-oriented outcomes.

Outcome Measured: Knee pain was the outcome measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), which requires participants to draw a mark between the …

Does Exercise Decrease The Level Of Anxiety In Adults?, Alexa N. Wister

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine whether or not “Does exercise decrease the level of anxiety in adults?”

Study Design: A systematic review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that were peer reviewed and published between 2016 and 2020.

Data Sources: All articles were published in peer-reviewed journals. Two of the RCTs were researched using Pubmed and one RCT was found using Academic Search Premier, AMED. All studies were selected based on applicability to the clinical question presented in the objective, and if the researched outcomes were patient oriented.

Outcome Measured: A reduction in anxiety …

Is Cryoanalgesia An Effective Supplemental Method Of Post-Thoracotomy Pain Management?, Jency Boyce

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this EBM review is to determine if cryoanalgesia is an effective addition to pain management protocols for patients post-thoracotomy.

Study Design: This EBM review examines three randomized controlled trials.

Data Sources: Data was gathered from the three studies found on PubMed and EBSCOhost. Each study was published in a peer reviewed journal, in English between 2010 and 2021.

Outcome Measured: The outcome measured was pain reported by patients using a visual analag scale (VAS). Two studies utilized a 0-10 scale and the third a 0-100mm scale.

Results: In the study by Sepsas et al. it was …

Does The Use Of Blinatumomab Improve The Overall Survival Rate In Adults With Relapsed/Refractory Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia?, Julia Colangeli

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review paper is to determine whether or not, “Does the use of blinatumomab improve the overall survival rate in adults with relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia?”

Study Design: A systematic review of two RCTs and one case-based series were utilized. All studies were published between 2014-2019.

Data Sources: The two RCTs were found through PubMed and the case-based series was obtained through CINAHL Plus. All the studies were published in peer-reviewed journals.

Outcomes Measured: The main outcome measured in all the studies was overall survival. Both RCTs defined overall survival as the time from …

Progression Through Return-To-Sport And Return-To-Academics Guidelines For Concussion Management And Recovery In Collegiate Student Athletes: Findings From The Ivy League–Big Ten Epidemiology Of Concussion Study, Douglas J. Wiebe, Abigail C. Bretzin, Bernadette A. D'Alonzo, Ivy League–Big Ten Epidemiology Of Concussion Study Investigators, Arthur C. Maerlender

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

Objective To examine the progression of collegiate student athletes through five stages of a return-to- activity protocol following sport-related concussion (SRC).

Methods In a multisite prospective cohort study, we identified the frequency of initial 24–48 hours physical and cognitive rest, and the sequence of (1) symptom resolution and return to (2) exertion activity, (3) limited sport, (4) full sport and (5) full academics. In resulting profiles we estimated the likelihood of return to full sport ≤14 days or prolonged >28 days and tested for variability based on timing of the stages.

Results Among 1715 athletes with SRC (31.6% females), 67.9% …

Head Impact Exposure In Youth And Collegiate American Football, Grace B. Choi, Eric P. Smith, Stefan M. Duma, Steven Rowson, Eamon Campolettano, Mireille E. Kelley, Derek A. Jones, Joel D. Stitzel, Jillian E. Urban, Amaris Genemaras, Jonathan G. Beckwith, Richard M. Greenwald, Arthur C. Maerlender, Joseph J. Crisco

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

The relationship between head impact and subsequent brain injury for American football players is not well defined, especially for youth. The objective of this study is to quantify and assess Head Impact Exposure (HIE) metrics among youth and collegiate football players. This multiseason study enrolled 639 unique athletes (354 collegiate; 285 youth, ages 9–14), recording 476,209 head impacts (367,337 collegiate; 108,872 youth) over 971 sessions (480 collegiate; 491 youth). Youth players experienced 43 and 65% fewer impacts per competition and practice, respectively, and lower impact magnitudes compared to collegiate players (95th percentile peak linear acceleration (PLA, g) competition: 45.6 vs …

Constructing Neural Network Models From Brain Data Reveals Representational Transformations Linked To Adaptive Behavior, Takuya Ito, Guangyu Robert Yang, Patryk Laurent, Douglas H. Schultz, Michael W. Cole

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

The human ability to adaptively implement a wide variety of tasks is thought to emerge from the dynamic transformation of cognitive information. We hypothesized that these transformations are implemented via conjunctive activations in “conjunction hubs”—brain regions that selectively integrate sensory, cognitive, and motor activations. We used recent advances in using functional connectivity to map the flow of activity between brain regions to construct a task-performing neural network model from fMRI data during a cognitive control task. We verified the importance of conjunction hubs in cognitive computations by simulating neural activity flow over this empirically-estimated functional connectivity model. These empiricallyspecified simulations …

Affective Flexibility As A Developmental Building Block Of Cognitive Reappraisal: An Fmri Study, Jordan E. Pierce, Eisha Haque, Maital Neta

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

Cognitive reappraisal is a form of emotion regulation that involves reinterpreting the meaning of a stimulus, often to downregulate one’s negative affect. Reappraisal typically recruits distributed regions of prefrontal and parietal cortex to generate new appraisals and downregulate the emotional response in the amygdala. In the current study, we compared reappraisal ability in an fMRI task with affective flexibility in a sample of children and adolescents (ages 6–17, N = 76). Affective flexibility was defined as variability in valence interpretations of ambiguous (surprised) facial expressions from a second behavioral task. Results demonstrated that age and affective flexibility predicted reappraisal ability, …

Is Botulinum Toxin Effective At Reducing Sensory Symptoms In The Hands Of Patients With Raynaud’S Phenomenon?, Maria C. Dicioccio

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this systematic review is to determine, “Is Botulinum Toxin Effective at Reducing Sensory Symptoms in the Hands of Patients with Raynaud’s Phenomenon?”

Study Design: A systematic review of two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and one prospective case series published between 2017 and 2019.

Data Sources: The articles were discovered using PubMed or Academic Search Premier. The articles were published in English in peer-reviewed journals and selected based on pertinence to the clinical question.

Outcome Measured: A reduction in sensory symptoms was the outcome measured in all three studies using the VAS pain score (0-10/100) or McCabe …

Is Platelet Rich Plasma (Prp) Injection An Effective Therapy In Improving Patient Functional Outcomes And Decreasing Pain Postoperatively In Adults With Meniscal Repairs?, Paige A. Foschi

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review is to determine: “Is platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection an effective therapy in improving patient functional outcomes and decreasing pain postoperatively in adults with meniscal repairs.”

Study Design: A systematic review of three randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published between 2018 and 2019.

Data Sources: All three RCTs were discovered using PubMed, AMED, CINAHL Plus, and Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Source. The articles were published in English in peer-reviewed journals and selected based on applicability to the clinical question.

Outcome Measured: Patients’ pain was assessed using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the …

Does Atomoxetine Improve Inattentiveness In Adults With Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?, Sarah Defelice

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

Objective: The objective of this selective EBM review of three composite studies is to determine whether or not atomoxetine improves inattentiveness in adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)?

Study Design: A systematic review of three blinded randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published between 2011 and 2021.

Data Sources: Research was gathered from PubMed and Embase in December 2020-February 2021 for the three RCTs, and supplemental articles were found in September through November 2021 from PubMed. All three RCTs were published in English and found in peer-reviewed journals and were chosen based on their relevance to the topic question.

Outcome Measured: A …

Mindfulness And Pain Regulation: The Role Of Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Individuals With Chronic Pain, Ariana C. White

Honors Theses and Capstones

Chronic pain is a significant and widely prevalent health condition which requires comprehensive care to address the many facets contributing to symptomatology. In 2016, 20% of American adults (about 50 million) reported experiencing chronic pain, of which 7.4% indicated that chronic pain frequently limited their life and participation in activities within the past 3 months (CDC, 2018). As a result, many individuals with chronic pain turn to opioid-based medication for pain relief, but long-term use of opioids actually increases pain sensation (Tobin, 2019). Moreover, opioid medication is unable to target underlying mental health components which emerge as part of chronic …