Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation
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Arch Phys Med Rehabil · Oct 2013
Aerobic capacity, orthostatic tolerance, and exercise perceptions at discharge from inpatient spinal cord injury rehabilitation.
To describe physical capacity, autonomic function, and perceptions of exercise among adults with subacute spinal cord injury (SCI). ⋯ Exercise is well tolerated in adults with subacute SCI. Exercise interventions at this stage should focus on improving task-specific self-efficacy, and attention should be made to blood pressure regulation, particularly in individuals with motor complete TP.
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Arch Phys Med Rehabil · Oct 2013
Disorders of consciousness and disordered care: families, caregivers, and narratives of necessity.
By their nature, care decisions for patients with severe disorders of consciousness must involve surrogates. Patients, so impaired, have lost their decision-making capacity and the ability to direct their own care. Surrogates-family members, friends, or other intimates-must step in and make decisions about ongoing care or its withdrawal. ⋯ Through their perspectives, the article considers challenges to ongoing care and rehabilitation that are a function of a prevailing medical infrastructure and reimbursement framework better suited to patients with acute care needs. Specific attention is paid to the ethical challenges posed by reimbursement strategies such as "medical necessity" as well as those proposed for the Affordable Care Act. The argument concludes that when it comes to care for a disorder related to consciousness, its provision is not discretionary, and its receipt is not an entitlement but a civil right.
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Arch Phys Med Rehabil · Oct 2013
Comparison of muscle and skin perfusion over the ischial tuberosities in response to wheelchair tilt-in-space and recline angles in people with spinal cord injury.
To compare the efficacy of wheelchair tilt-in-space and recline on enhancing muscle and skin perfusion over the ischial tuberosities in people with spinal cord injury (SCI). ⋯ Our results indicate that a larger angle of tilt-in-space and recline is needed to improve muscle perfusion compared with skin perfusion. A position of 25° tilt-in-space combined with 120° recline is effective in enhancing muscle and skin perfusion of weight-bearing soft tissues at the ischial tuberosities.
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Arch Phys Med Rehabil · Oct 2013
Hemodynamic effects of L-threo-3,4-dihydroxyphenylserine (Droxidopa) in hypotensive individuals with spinal cord injury.
To determine the effect of an escalating dose of droxidopa (100, 200, and 400 mg) compared with placebo on seated blood pressure (BP) in hypotensive individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Secondarily, we aimed to determine the effect of droxidopa on (1) supine BP and heart rate, (2) the change in BP and heart rate when these individuals were transferred from the supine to the seated position, and (3) adverse event (AE) reporting. ⋯ Our preliminary findings suggest that droxidopa, at the doses tested, does not cause excessive increases in supine BP and the 400-mg dose appears to be effective at increasing seated BP for up to 3 hours in persons with SCI.