Does diagnosis matter? Evaluating impact of pediatric chronic pain diagnosis on pain and function.

Purpose: This study aimed to A) evaluate changes in pain and function following an outpatient interdisciplinary pain management program (IPMP) for children with different chronic pain conditions and B) explore differences in pain and function at baseline and discharge for different diagnoses.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed for 488 children who participated in an outpatient IPMP. Children's pain and physical, social, and emotional functioning were assessed at initial evaluation, discharge, and one-to-two-month follow-up.

Pneumorrhachis: A rare cause of headache in a patient with a traumatic spinal cord injury due to gunshot wound.

Context: A pneumorrhachis (PR) is a rare phenomenon in which air is found in the spinal canal. There are multiple etiologies, including iatrogenic, nontraumatic, and traumatic. Most traumatic PR are asymptomatic and resolve on their own, but a subset are symptomatic and require urgent surgical intervention.

Psychometric Properties of the Multidimensional Impression of Change in a Cohort of Pediatric Patients With Pain.

Objectives: This study assessed the utility of the Multidimensional Patient Impression of Change (MPIC) questionnaire in a pediatric pain population after interdisciplinary treatment.

Design: Observational study with retrospective chart review. The observed treatment program included psychological counseling, relaxation training, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and physician management.

Interdisciplinary Pain Management Improves Pain and Function in Pediatric Patients with Chronic Pain Associated with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome.

Background: The relation between chronic musculoskeletal pain and joint hypermobility in a small percentage of the pediatric population is well described. However, literature discussing the treatment of chronic pain associated with joint hypermobility in pediatrics is limited. The present study examines the impact of interdisciplinary treatment on chronic pain in pediatrics with joint hypermobility syndrome.

Effects of an Off-Axis Pivoting Elliptical Training Program on Gait Function in Persons With Spastic Cerebral Palsy: A Preliminary Study.

This preliminary study examined the effects of off-axis elliptical training on reducing transverse-plane gait deviations and improving gait function in 8 individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) (15.5 ± 4.1 years) who completed an training program using a custom-made elliptical trainer that allows transverse-plane pivoting of the footplates during exercise.

Building a pediatric neurocritical care program: a multidisciplinary approach to clinical practice and education from the intensive care unit to the outpatient clinic.

We describe our 10-year experience developing the Ruth D. & Ken M. Davee Pediatric Neurocritical Care Program at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Home-based aerobic conditioning for management of symptoms of fibromyalgia: a pilot study.

Objective: This pilot study was designed to evaluate the impact of a home-based aerobic conditioning program on symptoms of fibromyalgia and determine if changes in symptoms were related to quantitative changes in aerobic conditioning (VO(2) max).

Methods: Twenty-six sedentary individuals diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome participated in an individualized 12-week home-based aerobic exercise program with the goal of daily aerobic exercise of 30 minutes at 80% of estimated maximum heart rate. The aerobic conditioning took place in the participants' homes, outdoors, or at local fitness clubs at the discretion of the individual under the supervision of a physical therapist.

A critical analysis of the tender points in fibromyalgia.

Objective: To pilot methodologies designed to critically assess the American College of Rheumatology's (ACR) diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia.

Design: Prospective, psychophysical testing.

Setting: An urban teaching hospital.

West Nile virus encephalitis with thalamic involvement in an immunocompromised child.

West Nile virus has been an increasingly important pathogen in the United States since it was first reported in 1999. Neuroinvasive West Nile virus has been infrequently reported in the pediatric population. We report a case of severe West Nile virus encephalitis with cranial magnetic resonance imaging findings not yet described in children.

The use of botulinum toxin in pediatric disorders.

Botulinum toxins have an exciting and important role in treating the child with hypertonia. The guidelines presented in this article are those that have been published representing the safe use of botulinum toxins in children. Experience and a decade of research have provided the framework for using botulinum toxins in decreasing deformity and promoting function.