Physical therapy
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Pediatric physical therapy seems to reduce skull deformation in infants with positional preference. However, not all infants show improvement. ⋯ Several predictors for responses to pediatric physical therapy in infants who were 2 to 4 months old and had positional preference, skull deformation, or both were identified. Health care professionals can use these predictors in daily practice to provide infants with more individualized therapy, resulting in a better chance for a good outcome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Build better bones with exercise: protocol for a feasibility study of a multicenter randomized controlled trial of 12 months of home exercise in women with a vertebral fracture.
Our goal is to conduct a multicenter randomized controlled trial (RCT) to investigate whether exercise can reduce incident fractures compared with no intervention among women aged ≥65 years with a vertebral fracture. ⋯ The viability of a large-scale exercise trial in women with vertebral fractures will be evaluated, as well as the effects of a home exercise program on important secondary outcomes.
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Whole-body vibration (WBV) has gained increasing popularity in rehabilitation. Recent studies have investigated the application of WBV in individuals with chronic illnesses, including stroke. ⋯ Based on the review, there is insufficient evidence to support clinical use of WBV in enhancing body functions and structures, activity, and participation after stroke.
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Numerous tools and individual items have been proposed to assess the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The frequency of use of these items varies according to health area, which suggests a lack of agreement regarding their relevance to trial quality or risk of bias. ⋯ To the authors' knowledge, this is the first factor analysis to explore the underlying component items used to evaluate the methodological quality or risk of bias of RCTs in physical therapy. The items and factors represent a starting point for evaluating the methodological quality and risk of bias in physical therapy trials. Empirical evidence of the association among these items with treatment effects and a confirmatory factor analysis of these results are needed to validate these items.
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The US Public Health Service (USPHS) recommends tobacco cessation counseling (TCC) training for all health care professionals. Within physical therapist practice, smoking can have adverse effects on treatment outcomes in all body systems. In addition, people with physical disabilities have a higher smoking prevalence than the general population, creating a strong need for tobacco cessation among physical therapy clientele. Therefore, TCC training is an important component of entry-level physical therapist education. ⋯ There is a need for TCC training in entry-level physical therapist education. Inclusion may be facilitated by addressing perceived barriers toward TCC as a component of physical therapist practice and promoting the relevance of TCC as it relates to intended outcomes of physical therapy interventions.