Performance of an automated blood pressure measurement device in a stroke rehabilitation unit.

Context: Valid blood pressure (BP) measurements are needed in post-stroke rehabilitation hospital units for the management of hypertension. Automated devices could be used to improve on usual care BP measurement. However, more information is needed about the performance of these devices in such a context.

Disability induced by hand osteoarthritis: are patients with more symptoms at digits 2-5 interphalangeal joints different from those with more symptoms at the base of the thumb?

Background: The contribution of osteoarthritis (OA) at the base of the thumb (BT) and digits 2-5 interphalangeal joints (IP) to disability in the hand has never been assessed.

Objectives: To evaluate and compare disability in patients with clinical hand OA and more severe symptoms at BT or IP.

Design: Observational, prospective, correlational.

Colonic transit time after spinal cord injury: any clinical significance?

Background: Both bowel dysfunction and increases in colonic transit time (CTT) are frequently observed in individuals with spinal cord injury; however, it is unknown whether there is an association between chronic intestinal problems and changes in CTTs. The current study investigates a possible relationship between the main intestinal symptoms of SCI patients and CTT values.

Methods: The following clinical variables and symptoms were investigated and collected in 30 individuals with SCI: total time for bowel care, abdominal pain, abdominal gas, success of rectal emptying, fecal incontinence, and decrease in quality of life.