Rehabilitation and Therapy Commons^™

Rehabilitation For Deafened Adults: A Puzzle With Missing Pieces, Miguel Oswald Aguayo

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study explored the psychological and social impact of adventitious deafness, and the rehabilitation services that were offered to individuals who acquired this condition in adulthood. Qualitative interviews were conducted with a sample of eight deafened adults, who were recruited from across Ontario. The results show that medical interventions (e. g., audiometric testing, hearing aid provision, and cochlear implantation) were relied on exclusively as a rehabilitation approach in providing care to deafened people. None of the study participants were offered individual, family, or group counselling by their hearing health service providers. This lack of attention to the socio-emotional needs of …

Functional Outcome Measures Following Isometric Quadriceps Strengthening In Individuals With Knee Osteoarthritis, Rochelle Cibor, Damon Collier, Kris Cooper

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine if the strength gained from the performance of a six week isometric training program for the quadriceps femoris would result in improvements in the disability level, strength, pain, stiffness, and functional abilities of patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). Twelve subjects with symptomatic knee OA were randomly assigned to either control or experimental groups, with the experimental group completing a six week isometric program. Pre- and post-test measures included strength assessment on the Biodex and completion of the WOMAC Osteoarthritis Index. Results indicate that experimental subjects had significant improvements in strength and disability …

A Comparison Of The Health Belief Model And Stages Of Change In Exercise Behavior Construct In Cardiac Rehabilitation Patients, Tracey Phillips

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the Health Belief Model (HBM) and the STAGES theoretical constructs in the uncovering of influencing factors associated with exercise compliance behaviors in cardiac rehabilitation subjects.

Sixty subjects who had experienced a cardiac event and who were attending a phase II outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program participated in this study. A questionnaire regarding health beliefs and exercise behavior classification was administered. Questions pertained to general health motivations, effectiveness of the intervention, perception of disease severity, perception of susceptibility and the stage of exercise behavior.

An analysis of variance and Tukey's post hoc comparison statistical …

Physical Therapist Characteristics And Practices That Affect Patient Willingness To Comply With Home Exercise Programs, Greg Angell, Andrea Glaspie, Melinda Winters

Masters Theses

Home exercise programs are a vital part of sustaining physical therapy treatment effectiveness and encourages the patient to become an active participant in their care. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between compliance with therapeutic home exercise programs (HEP) and the patient’s perception of a physical therapist’s characteristics such as appearance, demeanor, role modeling behaviors, and humanistic traits. 250 survey questionnaires were distributed to seven outpatient physical therapy clinics in west Michigan with a 49.6% return rate. The results of this study demonstrate physical therapist personality traits and clinical practices were perceived by patients to be …

The Pre-Absorptive, Instantaneous Effects Of Natural And Refined Sugar On Quadriceps Peak Torque, Brian Adams, Kevin Valdes, Scott Vanzanten

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of natural and refined sugar at an instantaneous, pre-absorptive level on quadriceps peak torque and to measure any prolonged effect on normal, healthy subjects. The experimental group (n=40) was randomly assigned to sugar testing order, with refined sugar testing occurring on one day and natural sugar testing occurring on the opposite day. The control group (n=10) followed the same protocol but held distilled water in their mouth. Isokinetic peak torque was recorded for each subject at three intervals, pretest, post-test I (~1 min.), and posttest n (-15 min.). Results showed …

The Effect Of Cognitive Load On Stance Width Of Healthy Older Adults, Susan Brown, Amy Thackery

Masters Theses

Research has shown that narrower stance widths lead to increased postural sway. There is also evidence of increased postural sway with cognitive loading. However, no research has been done to investigate the effect of a cognitive load on stance width. The purpose of this study was to determine if a cognitive task affected the stance widths of healthy, community dwelling 65-80 year old adults. Subjects underwent six task trials (three cognitive, three non-cognitive) after which their stance width was measured. Cognitive task trials required subjects to count backwards by 7's; non-cognitive task trials required subjects to look at a picture …

The Effect Of Nutritional Supplementation And Exercise On Subjective Pain And Function In People With Osteoarthritis Of The Knee, Anna Power, Dan Scheffer

Masters Theses

Nutritional Supplementation of glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate are being promoted in the treatment of osteoarthritis. Recent research has indicated that gelatin was found effective. Moderate exercise is also being advocated. The purpose of this eight week double blind study was to examine the effects of the inexpensive nutritional supplement gelatin, in the form of Knox Nutrajoint, and exercise on pain and functional activity in 49 subjects with osteoarthritis in one or both knees. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four groups: placebo, placebo plus exercise, gelatin supplement plus exercise and exercise. Exercise consisted of a progressive walking program. …

Exploration Into The Validity Of Use Of The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test Of Motor Proficiency In Assessing The Adolescent With Down Syndrome, Robin J. Essebaggers, Wynne M. Martin, Gina E. Smies

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOTMP) in assessing the adolescent with Down syndrome. Thirteen individuals with Down syndrome ages 13 to 20 years with an IQ of at least 35 were administered the short form of the BOTMP (BOTMP-SF). The functional abilities of these subjects were assessed using the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Four parts of the PEDI were utilized: 1) Self-Care Functional Skills, 2) Self- Care Caregiver Assistance, 3) Mobility Functional Skills, and 4) Mobility Caregiver Assistance. No evidence of significant correlation existed between the …

Research Based Practice Among Members Of The Michigan Physical Therapy Association, Sarah M. Bennett, James D. Courter, Rachel E. Hastings

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which research based practice (RBP) is employed by Michigan Physical Therapy Association Members by assessing attitudes toward research, level of research involvement/scholarly pursuit, and reasons for using or not using treatment interventions.

Three hundred and thirty questionnaires were distributed by mail to a random sample of Michigan Physical Therapy Association Members. A total of 133 questionnaires were used for analysis. Descriptive frequencies were calculated for each section of the questionnaire. Chi-square and Fischer's Exact tests were used to examine significant relationships.

Respondents in the present study overwhelmingly supported (~90%) …

Anti-Bacterial Effect Of Hvpc In Vivo, Marc Campolo

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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The Effects Of Prosthesis Use Versus Non-Use On Forward Reach Distance In Children Ages 5 To 15 With Unilateral Upper Extremity Amputation As Measured By The Functional Reach Test, Mary E. Weber, Scot G. Smith

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible differences in maximal forward reaching distance in children with unilateral upper extremity amputations while wearing and not wearing a prosthesis using the Functional Reach (FR) test. Trends were noted between FR scores of these children and children without disabilities.

Four children, ages 5-8, completed the FR test using the intact arm under two conditions, “prosthesis-off” and “prosthesis-on”. A paired, two-tailed t test (a = .05) was used to determine the statistical significance of the means of differences in FR scores between the two conditions.

No statistically significant difference was found …

Functional Effects Of Botulinum Toxin-A Intramuscular Injections In A Patient With Traumatic Brain Injury: A Single Subject Case Design, Christina M. Higel, Molly L. Arndt

Masters Theses

This single subject case design sought to evaluated the long-term and short-term effectiveness of Botulinum Toxin-A (BTXA) treatment in conjunction with directed physical therapy on spasticity, active range of motion (AROM), passive range of motion (PROM), Functional Independence Measurement (FIM) scores, and motor performance in a patient with TBI. Researchers hyopothesized that directed physical therapy in conjunction with BTXA would maximize a subject’s motor control and performance. An "A₁-BC-B-A₂” single subject design, scheduled to last six months and three weeks, was proposed. Clinically significant changes were defined as: a decrease by one point for the Modified …

Paraplegic Functional Ambulation With Long Leg Braces And Upper Extremity Support: Predicting Long Term Usage Patterns Utilizing The Functional Independence Measure, Karin Copenhaver, Matthew Sherman

Masters Theses

Individuals with a spinal cord injury (SCI) are frequently taught to ambulate with long leg braces and upper extremity support during their post-acute rehabilitation. In many cases this training fails to carry over once these individuals return to their homes after their rehabilitation course has ended. Subsequently, these individuals rely on their wheelchair as their primary mode of ambulation. Is ambulation training an expropriate intervention for patients in these cases? The purpose of this study was to investigate whether utilization of the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) may serve as a predictor of long term functional ambulation with long leg braces …

Validation Of The "Timed Up And Go" Test As A Functional Mobility Assessment Tool In The Pediatric Population, Susan Carman, Christina Rook, Cathy Ruprecht

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine the concurrent validity of the Timed Up and Go (TUG) as an assessment of functional mobility in the pediatric population. The TUG scores were correlated with the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Eighteen subjects with a variety of cognitive and physical disabilities, aged 6 to 7 years, were recruited. A one-tailed Spearman’s Rank Correlation Coefficient was used to analyze the scores. A weak inverse relationship between the TUG and PEDI scores (r_s = -0.386, p = 0.075) was found when the scores from all participants were analyzed. A moderate inverse …

Validation Of The Clinical Swallowing Evaluation In Stroke Patients, Yi-Nien Lin, Tyng-Guey Wang, Yeun-Chung Chang, Fu-Mei Hsieh, I-Nan Lien

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Although it has variable reliability, the bedside clinical swallowing evaluation (CSE) of dysphagia has long been accepted as the basic screening tool in the examination of the swallowing function of stroke patients. The purpose of this study was to define the reliability of the CSE by comparing it to the standard videofluoroscopic study of swallowing (VFSS). Thirty six stroke patients within a period of two years were included in this study, and all of them received the CSE and VFSS simultaneously. Three of them had a normal VFSS, whereas 21 (58%) aspirated during the VFSS examination. Ten of the people …

The Identification Of Domains And Competencies For Community Practice Occupational Therapy, Lisa Anne Werner

Masters Theses

Literature shows evidence of a shift in occupational therapy from traditional institutional settings to community-based settings. As increasing numbers of new and expert occupational therapists enter community-based practice, the need for competency identification for practice, education, and reimbursement becomes paramount. This qualitative research study sought to identify domains and competencies of community-based occupational therapy practice by interviewing three expert occupational therapists using the critical incident method in which each therapist described one therapeutic intervention with a client. This method, as seen in nursing studies (Benner, 1982, 1984), serves to elicit competencies embedded in expert practice. Thirty-nine competencies were described in …

Dysphagia And Videofluoroscopic Examination In Parkinson's Disease, Shin-Liang Pan, Tyng-Guey Wang, Yeun-Chung Chang

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a degenerative disorder of the nigrostriatal system, and frequently complicated with swallowing difficulties. This paper reviewed the current studies on the scope of the incidence, the clinical symptoms, the use of videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS), and the management of dysphagia in PD. The awareness of dysphagia in PD patients in previous studies was around 31 to 72 %, however, this figure does not reflect the actual severity of swallowing disorders in this group patients. We found a great variability in the incidence of swallowing disorder on VFSS, depending on the patients selected. Around 31 to 92% …

The Basic Unit Of A Myofascial Trigger Point, Ta-Shen Kuan, Shu-Min Chen, Jo-Tong Chen, Chang-Zern Hong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

This report summarized recent studies on the basic structures of a myofascial trigger point (MTrP). A MTrP is a hyperirritable spot in a palpable taut band of skeletal muscle fibers. Spot tenderness, recognized pain, and taut band are now demonstrated to be reliable diagnostic criteria of an MTrP. Referred pain (ReP) or local twitch response (LTR) is a confirmatory sign of MTrP. There are multiple loci in an MTrP region. The basic unit of an MTrP is the MTrP locus which contains a sensory component (the sensitive locus) and a motor component (the active locus). A sensitive locus is the …

The Relationship Between Congenital Muscular Torticollis And The Development Of Dominant Hand, Shu-Yi Wang, Chau-Peng Leong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

We studied dominant hand development in 158 patients with congenital muscular torticollis who had received physical therapy in Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung, from 1989 to 1995. There were 97 boys and 61 girls in the study group. The congenital muscular torticollis was right side in 84 patients and left side in 74 patients. We also enrolled 512 healthy children, aged from 3 to 5 years old, as the control group. Ninety-one percent of the control subjects were right handed, and nine percent of them were left handed. Subjects with right congenital muscular torticollis were right handed in 63.1% of …

The Risk Factors Of Cerebral Palsy In Very Low Birth Weight Prematurity, Jen-Wen Hung, Min-Yuan Yu, Hsueh-Wen Chang, Fang-Chih Hung, Chau-Peng Leong, Chung-Bin Huang, May-Kuen Wong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

nfants with a birth weight less than 1500gm (very low birth weight, VLBW) are more likely to have disabling cerebral palsy(CP). The aim of this study was to identify prenatal, perinatal, postnatal risk factors for CP in VLBW infants and to determine the usefulness of cranial ultrasonographic (us) findings in predicting CP.The study group comprised 159 VLBW infants born at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Kaohsiung in the period from 1989 to 1996. CP was diagnosed via clinical evaluation in twenty-five (15.7%) of these Children. Univariate analysis identified antepartum hemorrhage, pre-eclampsia, birth weight, gestational age, the type of delivery, Apgar …

Acquired Hip Subluxation And Dislocation In Cerebral Palsy, Li-Chen Tung, Chun-Hou Wang, Yu-Hui Huang, Liu-Ing Bih

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

The study group comprised eighty-nine cerebral palsy patients, 46 males and 43 females. The average age was 6.0±3.4 years old. Pelvic frontal view radiographs were made in a total of 178 hips. The migration percentage and acetabular index were measured by pelvic X-ray in all patients. Either hip subluxation or dislocation was diagnosed according to the criteria of Reimers, who considered a migration percentage greater than 33% to denote subluxation and a percentage greater than 100% to be denoted as dislocation. An overall incidence of hip subluxation and dislocation of 48.3% was found. According to the Pearson correlation coefficients data, …

Paraplegia Following Epidural Anesthesia: A Casereport, Yu-Ching Lin, Yen-Ho Wang, Kou-Mou Huang, Tien-Shang Huang

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

This article reports the case of a 36-year-old woman who experienced a sudden sharp pain in her lower back and became paraplegic after epidural anesthesia for a cesarean section. Three months later, the appearance of an ascending sensory level despite motor recovery raised the prssibilite of another lesion causing the new neurologic symptoms. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed arachnoiditis with subarachnoid cysts that severely compressed the thoracic spinal cord. Surgical decompression relieved the neurologic symptoms at first, but the symptoms soon deteriorated due to re-formation of adhesions and probably intrinsic cord damage. Based on our experience, carefully history taking and detailed …

The Effect Of Jogging On Anterior Knee Laxity After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction, Fawzi F. Bouzubar

Rehabilitation Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Jogging is commonly performed in the latter stages of the rehabilitation program (2½-3 months) following ACL reconstruction. However, its cyclic loading effect on the ACL graft, 4-6 months after surgery has not been examined. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine changes in anterior knee laxity before and after 15 minutes of jogging on the treadmill. Subjects (N=l 1) were 8 males and 3 females (X age= 30.27 ± 4.76 years; heights= 175.7 ± 10.7 cm; weights= 81.1 ± 15.9 kg) with unilateral ACL reconstruction (central 1/3 patellar tendon graft, postoperation range = 4-6 months). Measurements were made …

Sexual Life Of Patients With Spinal Cord Injury, Lin-Fang Chen, Liu-Ing Bih

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Most patients with a spinal cord injury have some physical and psychological disabilities, which usually interfere with their sexual lives. In order to investigate the sexual activities of spinal cord injured patients in Taiwan, this study analysed the completed questionnaires of 137 persons (45.9%) and the letters of 298 spinal cord injured patients. The sexual activity rate was 32% and the major determining factors were lesion sites and severity of injury. Persons who had the most active sexual life were those between 30 to 40 years old. There was no difference in sexual activity between males and females. Sexual life …

Additional Ultrasound Therapy After Myofacial Trigger Point Injection For The Management Of Postinjection Soreness, Min-Way Lai, Chang-Zern Hong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of trigger point injection (TPI) and combined treatment on an active myofascial trigger point (MrP).Design: A controlled clinical trial Setting: Our study was performed in a rehabilitation outpatient clinic. Participants: One hundred and sixty-two patients with active MrPs in the upper trapezius were investigated over a two year period, from 1995 to 1996. Forty-six healthy adults were included as the control group. Control study: The healthy subjects were assigned into three different groups which included healthy subjects without treatment (control group), patients without treatment (patient group) and patients accepting …

Effects Of An Anterior Ankle-Foot Orthosis On Hemiplegic Gait, Chiung-Ling Chen, Kwok-Tak Yeung, Shin-Han Wu, Ping-Yen Chiang

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Ankle-foot orthoses (AFOs) are frequently prescribed for hemiplegia to correct the ankle joint, provide mediolateral stability and improve ambulatory safety.Metal orthoses have gradually been replaced by plastic AFOs because metal orthoses are heavy and have a poor cosmetic appearance. Conventional plastic AFOs are designed in posterior leaf type and fabricated by a lamination or vacuum-forming technique over a positive plaster model of the limb. It takes time to fabricate a plastic AFO, and the effect of correcting for inversion of a hemiplegic foot is not obvious. Wu designed a low-temperature anterior direct molding AFO called an anterior AFO. It is …

Clinical Trial Of A Low-Temperature Plastic Anterior Ankle Foot Orthosis For Children With Habitual Toe Walking, May-Kuen Wong, Chin-Man Wang, Fuk-Tan Tang, Choon-Khim Chong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Six children with idiopathic (habitual) toe walking were fitted with a new type of plastic anterior ankle foot orthosis made from a low-temperature thermoplast. The age of the children ranged from 2 to 6 years and none had an associated neuromuscular disorder. The splint could be taken off and put on at will. The child wore it for a duration of 5 to 8 hours daily for a period of 3 to 8 weeks. At the end of treatment, all children had improved their range of dorsiflexion by at least 20 degrees. No recurrence was found at one to two …

Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia－Clinical Analysis And Experience Of Rehabilitation：A Casereport, Pong-Yuen Wong, Yun-Chyi Wang, Pin-Tang Ko, Yi-Lung Sun, Fuk-Tan Tang, May-Kuen Wong

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) is a rare degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. The mode of inheritance may be autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or X-linked. Clinical features include a normal perinatal and birth history, slow progressive spasticity of the bilateral lower limbs, hyperreflexia, increased extensor plantar responses, and positive knee and ankle clonus resulting in walking difficulty and an abnormal gait. Rehabilitation training for hereditary spastic paraplegia has seldom been discussed. We present a case of HSP who received physical and occupational therapies.A 12-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital on July 23, 1995 due to insidious onset …

Superior Sagittal Sinus Thrombosis Causing Bilateral Hemiplegia : Casereport, Nai-Hsin Meng, Tyng-Guey Wang, Chein-Wei Chang

Rehabilitation Practice and Science

Superior sagittal sinus thrombosis is an uncommon stroke syndrome which may cause serious complications, including increased intracranial pressure, seizures or unilateral or bilateral hemiplegia with motor deficit more prominent in the lower limbs and proximal upper limbs. We present a 57-year-old male patient who had seizures and recurrent transient ischemic attacks in 1995. He was shown to have superior sagittal sinus thrombosis on magnetic resonance imaging and received oral anticoagulation therapy. Four months after initial treatment he had hemorrhagic infarctions over bilateral cerebral hemispheres and bilateral hemiplegia resulted. Little neurologic recovery was noted during the two-year follow up. The possible …

The Effect Of Floor Sitting Posture On Low-Back Pain, Knee Pain And Hip Pain Among Kuwaiti Men, Sameera H. Al-Jedi

Rehabilitation Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Background and Purpose. Ground resting posture is common in Kuwait and other Arab communities. Kuwaiti men gather daily, especially on weekend nights socializing in the Diwaniya. Diwaniya is a special room in every Kuwaiti house. The Diwaniya is traditionally furnished with seating cushions and pillows. Men are seated on the floor in a tailor-sitting posture for long periods of time. The tailor-sitting posture flexes the trunk. hips, and knees. The flexion position has been shown to decrease the lumbar lordosis and increase joint compression in hips and knees. However there are no studies about the effect of floor sitting …