Disability and rehabilitation
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To review literature on return to work (RTW) and employment in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI), and present employment rates, factors influencing employment, and interventions aimed at helping people with SCI to obtain and sustain productive work. ⋯ This review confirmed low employment rates after SCI. Future research should explore interventions aimed at helping people with SCI to obtain and sustain productive work.
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Review Comparative Study
Clinical expression profiles of complex regional pain syndrome, fibromyalgia and a-specific repetitive strain injury: more common denominators than pain?
To systematically evaluate and compare the clinical manifestations, disease course, risk factors and demographic characteristics of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome type 1 (CRPS), fibromyalgia (FM) and a-specific Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). ⋯ Apart from some obvious differences between CRPS, FM and RSI, the similarities are conspicuous. The common features of CRPS, FM and a-specific RSI may suggest that a common pathway is involved, but until patients with these type of symptoms are assessed with a uniform assessment procedure, a thorough comparison cannot be made. A systematic evaluation of patients with a suspected diagnosis of CRPS, FM or RSI, may lead to a better appreciation of the differences and similarities in these diseases and help to unravel the underlying mechanisms.
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The clinician often faces the problem that certain types of chronic pains remain refractory to the commonly used analgesic treatment options. Neuropathic pain, which is defined as pain caused by direct nerve lesions, may have different causes and a variety of clinical presentations. A correct management of chronic neuropathic pain requires a thorough understanding of the potential causes, the diagnosis and the pathophysiological mechanisms. ⋯ This article, which is based on extensive literature review, aims at providing a concise review of the current knowledge regarding aetiology, diagnosis and pathophysiology of neuropathic pain.
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Fibromyalgia (FM) and chronic widespread pain (CWP) are common, but the etiology of these disorders remains poorly understood. A large body of data indicates a neurobiological basis for these disorders, but this information has not been effectively transmitted to many medical professionals. ⋯ An appreciation of the neurobiological basis for these disorders, and an understanding of some of the abnormalities of pain processing present in patients with FM, will hopefully provide greater understanding of these patients. It may also serve to decrease the level of frustration and improve the care experience of both chronic pain patients and physicians.
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To identify outcome measures cited in published studies focusing on rehabilitation in the acute hospital and in early post-acute rehabilitation facilities, and to identify and quantify the concepts contained in these measures using the ICF as a reference. ⋯ The ICF provides a valuable reference to identify and quantify the concepts of outcome measures focusing on rehabilitation in the acute hospital and in early post-acute rehabilitation facilities. Our findings indicate a need to define and to agree on 'what should be measured' in rehabilitation care to allow for a comparison of patient populations.