Rehabilitation & Aged Care Collected Works
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ItemPatterns of medication prescription by dementia diagnosis in Australian nursing home residents: a cross‐sectional study(Wiley, 2019-01-17)Current information on the patterns of medication use in nursing home residents living with dementia is conflicting. The aim of this study was to investigate medication use and its associations with dementia diagnosis in Australian nursing home residents.
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ItemTrends in Prevalence of Dementia for People Accessing Aged Care Services in Australia(Oxford Academic, 2019-03-15)Studies in some high-income countries have reported a potential decline in the prevalence of dementia. Improvements in cardiovascular health may be contributing to this decline. The objective was to examine trends in prevalence of dementia and survival with dementia for people accessing aged care in Australia.
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ItemHealth Professional Perspectives on Rehabilitation for People With Dementia(Oxford Academic, 2019-02-13)Multidisciplinary rehabilitation is not incorporated into the usual care pathway for dementia despite increasing demand from key advocates. Clinician views regarding the relevance of rehabilitation in dementia care are not well known. This qualitative study explored the perspectives of health professionals regarding barriers to provision of multidisciplinary rehabilitation programs for people with dementia.
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ItemWalking aid use after discharge following hip fracture is rarely reviewed and often inappropriate: an observational study(Elsevier, 2011-02-25)Questions What walking aid prescription occurs at discharge after hip fracture? What changes in walking aid use occur in the following six months? Who initiates changes in walking aids and why? Design Prospective longitudinal observational study. Participants 95 community-dwelling older adults who had undergone surgical treatment of a hip fracture. Outcome measures Range of walking aids prescribed at discharge and participants’ recall of advice about progression were recorded. Progression of walking aids was observed fortnightly over 6 months. With any change in walking aid use, an independent physiotherapist determined if it was appropriate and participants reported the reason for the change. Results Most participants were discharged from their final inpatient setting with a wheeled frame (92%). Eighty-two (86%) participants were not aware of any goals set by the physiotherapist for the first 6 months and 89 (94%) stated that a review time had not been set. Despite this, 78 (82%) participants changed their walking aid, on average 8 weeks (SD 6) after discharge. However, 32% of those who changed their walking aids were using an inappropriate aid or using it incorrectly. Six months after discharge, 40% of participants had not returned to using their pre-morbid indoor aid and 50% their outdoor aid. Conclusion A review of walking aid by a physiotherapist is rare within six months after discharge following hip fracture. Most patients make their own decision about what walking aid is most appropriate. This has safety implications in a group at high risk of falls.
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ItemVirtual reality for stroke rehabilitation (Review)(Cochrane Collaboration, 2015-02-12)Background Virtual reality and interactive video gaming have emerged as recent treatment approaches in stroke rehabilitation. In particular, commercial gaming consoles have been rapidly adopted in clinical settings. This is an update of a Cochrane Review published in 2011. Objectives Primary objective: To determine the efficacy of virtual reality compared with an alternative intervention or no intervention on upper limb function and activity. Secondary objective: To determine the efficacy of virtual reality compared with an alternative intervention or no intervention on: gait and balance activity, global motor function, cognitive function, activity limitation, participation restriction and quality of life, voxels or regions of interest identified via imaging, and adverse events. Additionally, we aimed to comment on the feasibility of virtual reality for use with stroke patients by reporting on patient eligibility criteria and recruitment. Search methods We searched the Cochrane Stroke Group Trials Register (October 2013), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library 2013, Issue 11), MEDLINE (1950 to November 2013), EMBASE (1980 to November 2013) and seven additional databases. We also searched trials registries and reference lists. Selection criteria Randomised and quasi‐randomised trials of virtual reality ("an advanced form of human‐computer interface that allows the user to 'interact' with and become 'immersed' in a computer‐generated environment in a naturalistic fashion") in adults after stroke. The primary outcome of interest was upper limb function and activity. Secondary outcomes included gait and balance function and activity, and global motor function. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently selected trials based on pre‐defined inclusion criteria, extracted data and assessed risk of bias. A third review author moderated disagreements when required. The authors contacted investigators to obtain missing information. Main results We included 37 trials that involved 1019 participants. Study sample sizes were generally small and interventions varied. The risk of bias present in many studies was unclear due to poor reporting. Thus, while there are a large number of randomised controlled trials, the evidence remains 'low' or 'very low' quality when rated using the GRADE system. Control groups received no intervention or therapy based on a standard care approach. Intervention approaches in the included studies were predominantly designed to improve motor function rather than cognitive function or activity performance. The majority of participants were relatively young and more than one year post stroke. Primary outcome: results were statistically significant for upper limb function (standardised mean difference (SMD) 0.28, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.08 to 0.49 based on 12 studies with 397 participants). Secondary outcomes: there were no statistically significant effects for grip strength, gait speed or global motor function. Results were statistically significant for the activities of daily living (ADL) outcome (SMD 0.43, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.69 based on eight studies with 253 participants); however, we were unable to pool results for cognitive function, participation restriction, quality of life or imaging studies. There were few adverse events reported across studies and those reported were relatively mild. Studies that reported on eligibility rates showed that only 26% of participants screened were recruited. Authors' conclusions We found evidence that the use of virtual reality and interactive video gaming may be beneficial in improving upper limb function and ADL function when used as an adjunct to usual care (to increase overall therapy time) or when compared with the same dose of conventional therapy. There was insufficient evidence to reach conclusions about the effect of virtual reality and interactive video gaming on grip strength, gait speed or global motor function. It is unclear at present which characteristics of virtual reality are most important and it is unknown whether effects are sustained in the longer term.
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ItemVirtual reality for stroke rehabilitation (Review)(Cochrane Collaboration, 2011-09-07)Background Virtual reality and interactive video gaming have emerged as new treatment approaches in stroke rehabilitation. In particular, commercial gaming consoles are being rapidly adopted in clinical settings; however, there is currently little information about their effectiveness. Objectives To evaluate the effects of virtual reality and interactive video gaming on upper limb, lower limb and global motor function after stroke. Search methods We searched the Cochrane Stroke Group Trials Register (March 2010), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library 2010, Issue 1), MEDLINE (1950 to March 2010), EMBASE (1980 to March 2010) and seven additional databases. We also searched trials registries, conference proceedings, reference lists and contacted key researchers in the area and virtual reality equipment manufacturers. Selection criteria Randomised and quasi‐randomised trials of virtual reality ('an advanced form of human‐computer interface that allows the user to 'interact' with and become 'immersed' in a computer‐generated environment in a naturalistic fashion') in adults after stroke. The primary outcomes of interest were: upper limb function and activity, gait and balance function and activity and global motor function. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently selected trials based on pre‐defined inclusion criteria, extracted data and assessed risk of bias. A third review author moderated disagreements when required. The authors contacted all investigators to obtain missing information. Main results We included 19 trials which involved 565 participants. Study sample sizes were generally small and interventions and outcome measures varied, limiting the ability to which studies could be compared. Intervention approaches in the included studies were predominantly designed to improve motor function rather than cognitive function or activity performance. The majority of participants were relatively young and more than one year post stroke. Primary outcomes: results were statistically significant for arm function (standardised mean difference (SMD) 0.53, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.25 to 0.81 based on seven studies with 205 participants). There were no statistically significant effects for grip strength or gait speed. We were unable to determine the effect on global motor function due to insufficient numbers of comparable studies. Secondary outcomes: results were statistically significant for activities of daily living (ADL) outcome (SMD 0.81, 95% CI 0.39 to 1.22 based on three studies with 101 participants); however, we were unable to pool results for cognitive function, participation restriction and quality of life or imaging studies. There were few adverse events reported across studies and those reported were relatively mild. Studies that reported on eligibility rates showed that only 34% (standard deviation (SD) 26, range 17 to 80) of participants screened were recruited. Authors' conclusions We found limited evidence that the use of virtual reality and interactive video gaming may be beneficial in improving arm function and ADL function when compared with the same dose of conventional therapy. There was insufficient evidence to reach conclusions about the effect of virtual reality and interactive video gaming on grip strength or gait speed. It is unclear at present which characteristics of virtual reality are most important and it is unknown whether effects are sustained in the longer term. Furthermore, there are currently very few studies evaluating the use of commercial gaming consoles (such as the Nintendo Wii).