Rehabilitation and Therapy Commons^™

Occupational Therapy For Adolescents: A Nature-Based Interventions Approach, Amanda Cruze, Myrtyce Remus

Occupational Therapy Capstones

PURPOSE: The first purpose of this scholarly project was to address current trends in relation to adolescents’ increased reliance on technology, decreased exposure to natural settings, and utilization of nature in adolescent occupational therapy care. The second purpose of the scholarly project was to provide occupational therapists with an interventions guide for nature-based activities to be used with the adolescent population.

METHOD: A literature review was conducted on adolescents, technology and nature using PubMed, CINAHL, AJOT, OT Search, MESH, Google Scholar, and textbooks.

RESULTS: A review of the literature indicated that the target population, Generation Z, had grown up with …

An Occupation-Based Protocol For Treatment Of Adults With Burn Injury, Lyndsey Felber, Megan Metelak

Occupational Therapy Capstones

People are occupational beings. Occupations build the structure of a client’s day. Thus, occupations give life it’s meaning (Hocking, 2001). Occupational therapists have a holistic viewpoint of clients that focuses on improving their quality of life through meaningful occupations. There is a lack of literature supporting the use of occupationbased intervention with adults with burn injuries. Throughout the literature preparatory and purposeful interventions are prominent for burn rehabilitation. (Holavanahalli et al. 2011, Fung et al., 2010, Parry et al., 2012). According to Richard et al. (2008), current techniques to treat burn injuries have remained unchanged for centuries. They suggest that …

An Occupational Therapy Guide To Assessment Of Executive Function Of Rural Agriculture Workers, Cayleigh Gerstner, Alyssa Lopez

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: Develop a guide for occupational therapists working with rural agricultural-based individuals’ experiencing cognitive deficits. Methodology: A comprehensive literature review was completed with major topics including the definition of executive functioning, common duties of ranch/farm workers, relationship between executive functioning and work, rural agriculture culture. The goal of the literature review was to gain an understanding of the influence of executive functioning skills on engagement within occupational duties and tasks of rural agriculture workers. Results: An occupational therapy guide was developed to provide a list of common tasks/duties of ranchers/framers and the associated executive functioning skills as well as client …

An Occupation Based Intervention Protocol For Carpometacarpal Joint Arthroplasty, Joshua A. Gillbertson, Christopher G. Johnson

Occupational Therapy Capstones

The carpometacarpal (CMC) joint is located at the base of thumb and, functionally, is the most important joint within the hand due to its extensive mobility and the importance it has on the dexterity of human prehension. Due to the hypermobility and high degrees of utilization of the CMC joint, it is a common area for increased pain, joint disease, and the development of arthritis. Arthritis can be a debilitating condition as it is associated with instability, deformities, and limited range of motion, which all impact engagement in activities of daily living and meaningful occupations. When conservative treatments and non-surgical …

Substance Abuse Post-Spinal Cord Injury: A Manual For Occupational Therapists, Janaye Hellman, Emilee Soper

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this scholarly project was to assist therapists in physical rehabilitation settings to begin addressing and treating substance abuse with patients post spinal cord injury (SCI). The project provides therapists with a resource guide to use for identifying specific screenings. occupational therapy assessments, intervention strategies, and discharge recommendations that may be useful during treatment sessions.

Methods: The literature review was conducted on the topics of substance abuse and SCIs. Research identified there is a lack of substance abuse recognition and treatment by healthcare professionals in a physical rehabilitation setting as many healthcare professionals such as occupational therapists …

Community Based Program For Young Adults With High Functioning Autism: Social Participation And Dating, Brook Dahle, Laura Hennes

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: In the United States, autism spectrum disorders affect 1 in 88 individuals (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). Autism spectrum disorders affect individuals throughout their lifespan (Alexander, 2011). The most significant impairment in individuals with high functioning autism experience is qualitative impairment in social interaction (Sadock & Sadock, 2008). Services for individuals with autism spectrum disorders are available until the age of 21. Therefore, adults with autism spectrum disorders have limited access to intervention even though they continue to struggle (Shattuck, Wagner, Narendorf, Sterzinger, & Hansley, 2011). The focus of this project is young adults with high functioning …

Caregivers Of Children With Disabilities: An Exploratory Study Of Factors Influencing Occupational Therapy Home Programming Engagement, Sara E. Joersz, Rebecca I. Polansky

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: Home programming for children with disabilities is prescribed frequently by occupational therapists as an effective adjunct to practice-setting occupational therapy. The effectiveness of home programming is largely influenced by the degree to which caregivers (and children) adhere to the home programming parameters. Numerous factors are thought to promote or limit home programming adherence but there is a lack of quantitative research addressing the relationships between these factors and home programming adherence. The purpose of this quantitative, independent study was to explore the factors that are correlated with or influence caregivers’ adherence to their child’s occupational therapy home program. A …

Occupational Therapy In The Intensive Care Unit: A Quick Reference Guide, Susie Bonn, Megan Keidel

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to create a quick reference guide for occupational therapists treating clients in the intensive care unit (ICU) in order to increase quality of care, decrease medical errors, and improve confidence.

Methods: A literature review was conducted to determine the needs of occupational therapists and other health professionals working in the ICU environment. It was discovered that occupational therapists do not receive specific education on treating clients in the ICU and that there are no specific resources for occupational therapists currently available. Rehabilitation is beginning sooner within the ICU in order to decrease client …

Occupational Therapy Screening Tool For School-Aged Children With Sleep Problems, Jenae Becker, Kathryne Kitchen

Occupational Therapy Capstones

The purpose of this scholarly project was to review the occupational therapy literature and develop a guide to instruct occupational therapists in screening children with sleep problems and associated occupational performance issues.

The primary method used for this project was the use of an extensive literature review of common sleep problems, co-morbidities of sleep problems, the impact of lack of sleep, sleep interventions, and the role of occupational therapy when addressing sleep problems in school-aged children. A number of search engines were utilized including PubMed, CINAHL, PsychInfo, OT Search, OT Seeker, and OT textbooks.

The literature indicated there was a …

Understanding Culturally Competent Care In Occupational Therapy School To Providing Clinical Practice, Tracy Lord

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: This purpose of this study is to determine if the knowledge that is gained in occupational therapy school about working with diverse cultures is continually developed and applied while practicing in the field of occupational therapy.

Methodology: Data was collected from 18 participants in a quantitative survey and 6 participants in a qualitative interview from four Southwestern states.

Results: Results of this study suggest that the therapists who have graduated within the last 20 years have a greater understanding of including a client’s culture to provide true client-centered care in the delivery of occupational therapy services. 50% of the …

Temporo-Spacial Prompting For Persons With Cognitive Impairment Using Smart Wrist-Worn Interface, William Kearns, Jan M. Jasiewicz, James L. Fozard, Paul Webster, Steven Scott, Jeffrey Craighead, Mary E. Bowen, Joseph Mccarthy

Public Health Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Experiences Of Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students: An Exploratory Phenomenological Study, Anysia J. Ensslen

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

Within the past decade little research has been conducted in the United States to examine the preparedness of beginning speech-language pathologists; the seminal article used for this research study comes from the United Kingdom (Horton, Byng, Bunning, & Pring, 2004). Literature from the past few decades indicates that there may be deficiencies in the way that beginning speech-language pathologists are being trained clinically.

The review of the literature suggests that the field may lack a clear and broadly supported learning theory or framework for the clinical supervision and training of speech-language pathology graduate students. The literature further supports the importance …

Development Of An Eeg Brain-Machine Interface To Aid In Recovery Of Motor Function After Neurological Injury, Elizabeth Salmon

Theses and Dissertations--Biomedical Engineering

Impaired motor function following neurological injury may be overcome through therapies that induce neuroplastic changes in the brain. Therapeutic methods include repetitive exercises that promote use-dependent plasticity (UDP), the benefit of which may be increased by first administering peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) to activate afferent fibers, resulting in increased cortical excitability. We speculate that PNS delivered only in response to attempted movement would induce timing-dependent plasticity (TDP), a mechanism essential to normal motor learning. Here we develop a brain-machine interface (BMI) to detect movement intent and effort in healthy volunteers (n=5) from their electroencephalogram (EEG). This could be used in …

Alterations In Visual Processing And Its Impact On Upright Postural Stability In Athletes Following Sport-Related Concussion, Andrea E. Cripps

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Athletes are at risk of sustaining a concussion in all sports and at all competitive levels which may lead to balance impairments. Balance results from the integration of visual, vestibular, and somatosensory information. The underlying pathophysiology for balance impairments is not well understood and visuo-motor processing impairments and how these impairments contribute to balance in concussed athletes has not been reported. Objectives: (1) to investigate the influence of visual perturbation on upright postural stability and balance in athletes who have recently suffered a sports-related concussion, (2) to establish the test-retest reliability of a simple visuo-motor processing task. Design: A longitudinal, …

Scapular Muscle Assessment In Patients With Lateral Epicondylalgia, Joseph M. Day

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

The role rehabilitation plays in the management of patients with lateral epicondylalgia (LE) remains elusive secondary to high recurrence rates. Addressing scapular muscle deficits may be important in the rehabilitation of patients with LE. However, it is unknown if scapular muscle impairments exist in a working population of patients with LE. The purpose of this dissertation was to assess scapular muscle strength and endurance in a working population of patients with LE.

Clinical scapular muscle assessment tools are limited in their ability to isolate specific muscles. Rehabilitative ultrasound imaging (RUSI) is a potentially useful tool but few studies have investigated …

Comparison Of Intra Individual Physiological Sway Complexity From Force Plate And Inertial Measurement Unit, Rahul Soangra, Thurmon E. Lockhart

Physical Therapy Faculty Articles and Research

Center of Pressure (COP) is a clinical measure to investigate the effect of sensory input disturbances on postural stability in healthy, old population as well in people suffering from neuromuscular disease. Increased center of pressure velocity and sway area are interpreted as decreased stability or poor balance and are associated with fall risk. Body mounted inertial sensors have shown great promise as an easily implemented clinical measure of balance. The aim of the present study is to investigate if force plate and accelerometer measurements provide similar physiological information when approximate entropy (ApEn) are valuated from the time series. Seven Young …

Intramuscular Manual Therapy After Failed Conservative Care: A Case Report, Brent Harper

Physical Therapy Faculty Articles and Research

Background and Purpose: During intramuscular manual therapy (IMT), an acupuncture needle is inserted into the skin and muscle. The direct mechanical stimulation may interrupt the pathogenic mechanisms of myofascial trigger points (MTrPs). The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the application and efficacy of IMT on a patient suffering from right chronic elbow lateral epicondylalgia. Methods: A case study of a 26-year-old male presenting with a 6-month history of right elbow pain who failed 11 conservative physical therapy sessions and previous site-specific acupuncture. The patient received 5 IMT sessions over 4 weeks. Findings: The patient had …

Changes In Lower Extremity Biomechanics Due To A Short-Term Fatigue Protocol, Nelson Cortes, Eric Greska, Roger Kollack, Jatin Ambegaonkar, James A. Onate

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Context: Noncontact anterior cruciate ligament injury has been reported to occur during the later stages of a game when fatigue is most likely present. Few researchers have focused on progressive changes in lower extremity biomechanics that occur throughout fatiguing.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of a sequential fatigue protocol on lower extremity biomechanics during a sidestep-cutting task (SS).

Design: Controlled laboratory study.

Setting: Laboratory.

Patients or Other Participants: Eighteen uninjured female collegiate soccer players (age 19.2 ± 0.9 years, height = 1.66 ± 0.5 m, mass 61.6 ± 5.1 kg) volunteered.

Intervention(s): The independent variable was fatigue level, with 3 …

The Resiliency And Attitudes Skills Profile: An Assessment Of Factor Structure, Takeyra Williams, Edwin Gomez, Eddie Hill, Tammi Milliken, Jennifer Goff, Nicole Gregory

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

This study examines the Resiliency Attitudes and Skills Profile (RASP) in an afterschool recreation program with sixth grade students (N=137). The purpose of the study was to inspect the psychometric properties of the RASP and the internal consistency of the RASP global scale and subscales. This article expands on research reported on the RASP. Findings suggest that the RASP measures aspects of resiliency along four factors/dimensions. Suggestions for future research are provided.

Melatonin Supplementation Improves Glycemic Control While Lowering Oxidative Stress In Type 2 Diabetes, Carmine R. Grieco, Sheri R. Colberg, C. Thomas Somma, Andrew G. Thompson, Aaron I. Vinik

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of melatonin on glycemic control and oxidative stress (OS) in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Fourteen subjects with T2D (10 female, 4 male; 52.5 ± 5.0 years) were randomly assigned to melatonin (MEL) or placebo groups (PLA) for 42 days, in a crossover design. Subjects ingested 10 mg of MEL or an identical placebo (PLA) 30 minutes prior to sleep. Fasting blood draws occurred at baseline, 42 days, and 84 days. Plasma malondialdehyde, a marker of OS, significantly decreased on MEL (-6.25±2.10 nmol/ml) compared to PLA (0.72±3.30, p=0.028). The …