scholarly journals A Systematic Review to Determine Best Practice Reporting Guidelines for AFO Interventions in Studies Involving Children with Cerebral Palsy

2010 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Ridgewell ◽  
Fiona Dobson ◽  
Timothy Bach ◽  
Richard Baker

Studies which have examined the effects of ankle-foot orthoses (AFOs) on children with cerebral palsy (CP) often report insufficient detail about the participants, devices and testing protocols. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the level and quality of detail reported about these factors in order to generate best practice guidelines for reporting of future studies. A systematic search of the literature was conducted to identify studies which examined any outcome measure relating to AFO use in children with CP. A customized checklist was developed for data extraction and quality assessment. There was substantial variability in the level and quality of detail reported across the 41-paper yield. Many papers reported insufficient detail to allow synthesis of outcomes across studies. The findings of this review have been used to generate guidelines for best practice of reporting for AFO intervention studies. It is important to ensure homogeneity of gait pattern in a subject sample or to subdivide a sample to investigate the possibility that heterogeneity affected results. It is also important to describe the orthosis in sufficient detail that the device can be accurately replicated because differences in designs have been shown to affect outcomes. These guidelines will help researchers provide more systematic and detailed reports and thereby permit future reviewers to more accurately assess both the reporting and quality of orthotic interventions, and will facilitate synthesis of literature to enhance the evidence base.

2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. S. E. Tsoi ◽  
L. A. Zhang ◽  
W. Y. Wang ◽  
K. L. Tsang ◽  
S. K. Lo

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-16
Author(s):  
Akshay Kumar ◽  
◽  
Vinita N/A ◽  

CP is the foremost cause of motor disability in children and affects two to five children in 1000 live births worldwide. It is been recognized as a global concern medically, socially, and economically due to the increasing financial burden to the states. About half of the children with cerebral palsy suffer a range of motion difficulties. The study aims to understand the role of orthotic devices and its efficacy in the treatment of the patient with cerebral palsy and gait improvement. An online database of Pubmed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, etc. searched to find the articles with the keywords, cerebral palsy, orthotic devices, orthosis, lower limb, and results were synthesized and narrated to explore the effectiveness of the devices on the gait pattern and quality of life of a patient with cerebral palsy. The database search was done without the barrier of dates and regions. Orthoses applied externally appear to be supported and had a diverse effect on gait depending on the type of orthosis. However, the relationship between gait pattern and AFOs and ankle properties is yet to be established. Additional research in this area is needed to complement the development of passive and active AFOs to provide larger improvements in walking capabilities.


10.2196/15512 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. e15512
Author(s):  
Jennifer Stargatt ◽  
Sunil Bhar ◽  
Jahar Bhowmik ◽  
Abdullah Al Mahmud

Background The number of older adults is increasing rapidly worldwide. Older adults face a unique set of challenges and may experience a range of psychological comorbidities. Advances in multimedia technology have allowed for digital storytelling to be utilized as an intervention for health-related outcomes. Objective The primary aim of the proposed systematic review is to examine the reported health-related outcomes for older adults engaged in digital storytelling. The review also aims to examine the methods associated with digital storytelling, characteristics of digital story products, and implementational considerations. Methods This protocol adheres to the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols. We will systematically search selected electronic databases to identify studies that meet our eligibility criteria. From the included studies, data will be extracted and synthesized using a narrative approach and summarized in tables. The methodological quality of the included studies will be assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Results Systematic searches, data extraction and analysis, and writing of the systematic review are expected to be completed by the end of 2019. Conclusions The proposed systematic review will summarize the existing studies using digital storytelling to improve health-related outcomes for older adults. Results from this review will provide an evidence base for the development of digital storytelling interventions that are effective and implementable with older adults. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/15512


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Billy Robinson ◽  
Enying Gong ◽  
Brian Oldenburg ◽  
Katharine See

BACKGROUND Asthma is a chronic respiratory disorder which requires long-term pharmacotherapy and patient empowerment to manage their condition and recognise and respond to asthma exacerbations. Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) represent a potential medium through which patients could improve the ability to self-manage their asthma. Few studies have conducted a systematic evaluation of asthma mobile applications for the quality and functionality of the apps using a validated tool. None of these reviews have systematically assessed these applications for their content compared to available international best practice guidelines. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study is to conduct a systematic review of adult-targeted asthma mobile health applications. As part of this review the potential for an mHealth app to improve asthma self-management and the overall quality of the application will be evaluated, using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) framework, and the quality of the information within an app, using the current Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) guidelines as a reference, will be assessed. METHODS A methodological stepwise approach was taken in creating this review. First the most recent GINA guidelines were independently reviewed by two authors to identify key recommendations that could feasibly be incorporated into a mHealth app. A previously developed asthma assessment framework was identified and modified to suit our research and ensure all of these identified recommendations were included. Two popular App stores were then reviewed to identify potential mHealth Apps. These Apps were screened based on pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Suitable applications were then evaluated. Technical information was obtained from publicly available information. The next step was to perform an application quality assessment using the validated MARS framework to objectively determine the quality of the application. Application functionality was then assessed using the IMS Institute for Health Informatics Functionality Scoring system. Finally, the mHealth applications will be assessed using a checklist that we have developed. RESULTS To date, funding has been received for the project from the Respiratory Department at Northern Health, Victoria. Three reviewers have been recruited to systematically evaluate the applications. Results for this study are expected by the end of this year. CONCLUSIONS This review represents the first that we know of that will examine all mobile health applications available in Australia targeted to adult asthmatics for their functionality, quality and consistency with international best practice guidelines. Though the review will only be conducted on mHealth Apps available in Australia, many applications are available internationally and thus should be largely generalisable to other English-speaking regions and users. The results of this review will help to fill gaps in the literature and assist clinicians in providing evidence-based advice to adult patients wishing to use mHealth apps as part of their asthma self-management. CLINICALTRIAL PROSPERO 269894


Medicina ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Norine Ma ◽  
Nicholas Sclavos ◽  
Elyse Passmore ◽  
Pam Thomason ◽  
Kerr Graham ◽  
...  

Background and Objectives: Equinus is the most common deformity in children with cerebral palsy, and surgical lengthening of the gastrocsoleus muscle-tendon unit is the most commonly performed operation for children with cerebral palsy. Treatment outcomes of orthopaedic surgery can be measured objectively with three-dimensional gait analysis. This study examined the quality of evidence for gastrocsoleus lengthening surgery based on objective measures. Materials and Methods: A search was performed with Medline, Embase and PubMed from 1990 to 25 August 2020 using the keywords “cerebral palsy”, “equinus”, “surgery” and “gait analysis”. Only studies of gastrocsoleus lengthening surgery using three-dimensional gait analysis were included, yielding 34 studies. Results: Fourteen studies reported swing phase kinematics and all studies reported a significant improvement. Rates of recurrent equinus and calcaneus were reported in 21 studies and varied widely based on follow-up period and surgical technique. Conclusions: Poor study quality and marked variability in study samples and interventions made comparison difficult. Future studies should consider prospective design, controls or comparison groups and more detailed breakdowns of outcomes by cerebral palsy subtype, sagittal gait pattern, and equinus type in order to allow more rigorous treatment recommendations to be made.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Stargatt ◽  
Sunil Bhar ◽  
Jahar Bhowmik ◽  
Abdullah Al Mahmud

BACKGROUND The number of older adults is increasing rapidly worldwide. Older adults face a unique set of challenges and may experience a range of psychological comorbidities. Advances in multimedia technology have allowed for digital storytelling to be utilized as an intervention for health-related outcomes. OBJECTIVE The primary aim of the proposed systematic review is to examine the reported health-related outcomes for older adults engaged in digital storytelling. The review also aims to examine the methods associated with digital storytelling, characteristics of digital story products, and implementational considerations. METHODS This protocol adheres to the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols. We will systematically search selected electronic databases to identify studies that meet our eligibility criteria. From the included studies, data will be extracted and synthesized using a narrative approach and summarized in tables. The methodological quality of the included studies will be assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. RESULTS Systematic searches, data extraction and analysis, and writing of the systematic review are expected to be completed by the end of 2019. CONCLUSIONS The proposed systematic review will summarize the existing studies using digital storytelling to improve health-related outcomes for older adults. Results from this review will provide an evidence base for the development of digital storytelling interventions that are effective and implementable with older adults.


Author(s):  
Firas Massaad ◽  
Frédéric Dierick ◽  
Adélaïde van den Hecke ◽  
Christine Detrembleur

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