Contained ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm presenting as cauda equina syndrome.

This is the case report of a contained ruptured aortic aneurysm presenting with acute cauda equina syndrome. The patient was a 79-year-old man. A literature search revealed various unusual presentations of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), including femoral neuropathy, hip pain and others; however, there are no other reports of cauda equina-like syndrome.

The association between musculoskeletal disorders and obesity.

The aim of this study was to examine the association between musculoskeletal disorders and the level of obesity (as defined by the body mass index) for a sample of the Australian population aged 20-64. A logistic regression model was used to estimate the association between musculoskeletal disorders and obesity, controlling for a range of socio-demographic characteristics. Individual-level data on obesity, musculoskeletal disorders, and various socio-demographic characteristics were extracted from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 1995 National Health Survey (NHS).

The Functional Independence Measure: a comparative validity and reliability study.

The majority of measurement scales used to evaluate outcome in rehabilitation are ordinal in nature and consequently statistically valid assessments of change are difficult to make. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) can be weighted to possess interval properties, potentially allowing more accurate analysis of change. In this study the FIM was compared to the Barthel Index (BI) to determine its validity, reliability and ease of use in two groups of 25 patients undergoing neurorehabilitation.