Biomedical subjects

Roger Adams

Publications and source records attributed to Roger Adams.

24 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2000

Musculoskeletal and neurological complications following coronary artery bypass graft surgery: A comparison between saphenous vein and internal mammary artery grafting.

The internal (thoracic) mammary artery (IMA) is currently the vessel of choice for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), due to its long term patency. The purpose of this study was to compare the incidence and nature of musculoskeletal and neurological complications following saphenous vein grafting (SVG) and internal mammary artery grafting (IMAG). Ninety-seven patients were screened by a physiotherapist for musculoskeletal and neurological complications three to six weeks following cardiac surgery. The incidence of new musculoskeletal and neurological complications was significantly higher in patients following IMAG (78.5 per cent) than SVG (45 per cent) (p < 0.001, chi2(1) = 17.04). A significant association between musculoskeletal complications affecting the anterior chest and harvesting of the IMA was also demonstrated.

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PubMed2000

Predicting a recovery time from the initial assessment of a quadriceps contusion injury.

Six quadriceps contusion tests were evaluated for inter-rater reliability and ability to predict the recovery time of 100 injured rugby players. All subjects were treated with a standardised and disciplined treatment program incorporating cryokinetics and modified training. Muscle firmness ratings, thigh circumference and passive knee flexion range of movement (ROM) measurements, and the unilateral palpation, brush-swipe and tap tests were all found to have substantial to excellent reliability (range: 0.66-1.00). Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that 64 per cent of the variance in the time taken to return to full training could be accounted for by an equation involving the uninjured-injured difference in knee range, relative firmness rating of the injured muscle, difference in circumferences at the suprapatellar border, being able to play on following injury and the time delay before starting treatment.

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PubMed1999

Discrimination of active plantarflexion and inversion movements after ankle injury.

To assess active ankle function in normal weightbearing after injuries, with a task that required discrete movements, 40 ankles were tested from subjects who had previously injured both ankles, injured one ankle only, or had never injured an ankle. Tests to assess discrimination between the extents of movements, in a range around 12 degrees off horizontal, were made in standing and carried out on both ankles, in plantarflexion and inversion directions. Subjects were found to have a greater ability to discriminate between movements in plantarflexion (a just noticeable difference of 7.5 per cent) than in inversion (10.4 per cent). Never injured subjects had better overall discrimination (7.3 per cent) than previously injured subjects (9.7 per cent) and there was no significant difference between the average discrimination score for both ankles from subjects with previous bilateral or unilateral injuries. This result is consistent with earlier findings on the bilateral associations of unilateral lower limb injuries.

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PubMed1999

Wobble board (ankle disc) training effects on the discrimination of inversion movements.

To assess the effect of a five-week training program using a wobble board on discrimination of discrete movements at the ankle, 40 ankles were tested from 20 subjects in a group of elite athletes. Players in a first grade rugby league squad were randomly allocated to either a wobble board training or no-training group. Pre-tests to assess discrimination of inversion movements made while standing were carried out on both ankles of all subjects using an automated device that enabled a normal share of weightbearing on the tested ankle. From a sequence of 160 inversion movements, a discrimination index was determined. This measure represents the relative difference in angular extent needed for an inversion movement to be differentiated 75 per cent of the time from the standard movement of 12.5 degrees below horizontal. Subjects were re-tested after either undertaking a five-week wobble board training program, or after having had no training. Discrimination of movements into inversion improved from the pre-test (Weber fraction 8.8 per cent) to the post training test (6.4 per cent) in the wobble board trained group. This discrimination improvement was significantly greater than the change in the untrained group (pre-test: 8.4 per cent and post-test: 8.1 per cent). These data demonstrate that wobble board training can improve discrimination of discrete ankle inversion movements, and support the Weber fraction as a measure of movement sensitivity.

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PubMed1999

Stroke rehabilitation: Does the therapy area provide a physical challenge?

It has been previously shown that stroke patients undergoing rehabilitation perform most physical activity under the supervision of a therapist when in the therapy area and very little activity when elsewhere. The aim of this paper was to identify conditions surrounding the performance of physical activity in the therapy area, in order to design strategies which would increase physical activity throughout the rehabilitation unit. Sixteen hemiplegic patients were observed in the therapy area. They were most active when with a therapist, whereas when alone, nearly two-thirds of their time was spent inactive. It appears that it is too difficult for patients to bridge the gap between fully-supervised and unsupervised practice. Strategies to provide patients with semi-supervised practice as a way of increasing the amount of overall physical activity, such as group sessions, are explored.

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PubMed1998

Effects of task-specific training on walking and sit-to-stand after total hip replacement.

Twenty subjects with total hip replacement (THR) who were still experiencing movement problems at an average of 12.7 months post-operation undertook a six week outpatient program based on task-specific training of functional activities. All subjects demonstrated improved performance of walking and sit-to-stand after the training period. Specifically, scores on the ratings of occurrence of critical biomechanical components of the two tasks increased. In addition, step lengths of both legs, stride length and peak weight on the side of the most recent THR during the extension phase of sit-to-stand all improved significantly. This descriptive study suggests that task-specific training may assist individuals to improve performance of walking and sit-to-stand even if undertaken many months after a THR.

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