Publications by authors named "Richard B Westrick"

Background: The objective was to summarize the methodology used to reach consensus for recommended minimum data elements that should be collected and reported when conducting injury surveillance research in military settings. This paper summarizes the methodology used to develop the international Minimum Data Elements for surveillance and Reporting of Musculoskeletal Injuries in the MILitary (ROMMIL) statement.

Methods: A Delphi methodology was employed to reach consensus for minimum reporting elements.

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Background: Musculoskeletal injuries enact a substantial burden in military settings, incurring high costs, long-term disability, and impacting military readiness. This has led to a prioritization of injury prevention programs. Understanding the challenges faced by those trying to implement these programs could help standardize and better inform future efforts.

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Introduction: Soldiers must be able to perform a multitude of physically demanding tasks as part of their regular duty, but their physical readiness is often degraded due to pain and musculoskeletal injury (MSKI). The presence of pain with movement has been associated with increased MSKI risk in Soldiers. Improved awareness of the prevalence of painful movements in uninjured Soldiers could help inform Army injury mitigation efforts.

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Article Synopsis
  • - This study focuses on the outcomes and follow-up expectations for U.S. service members who undergo elective knee surgeries, particularly examining how different surgical procedures impact recovery over time.
  • - It systematically reviewed data from 22 studies published from 2010 to 2021, analyzing factors like demographics, surgical variables, and follow-up outcomes related to knee surgery.
  • - Key findings reveal that a significant number of patients face complications after surgery, with one-third needing additional surgeries, and high rates of reinjury within a few years, especially following cruciate ligament repairs.
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Background: Researchers have assessed postoperative injury or disability predictors in the military setting but typically focused on 1 type of surgical procedure at a time, used relatively small sample sizes, or investigated mixed cohorts with civilian populations.

Purpose: To identify the relationship between baseline variables and injury incidence or military discharge status in US Army soldiers after knee surgery.

Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3.

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Introduction: One of the most debilitating types of bone stress injuries is those occurring at the femoral neck. This problem occurs in the military population with much higher incidence than in the normal population and is of great concern to military medical providers. Early detection and accurate diagnosis are key in protecting soldiers and recruits from sustaining a potentially career-ending fracture.

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Patellar tendinopathy (PT) is a common nontraumatic orthopaedic disorder of the knee suffered by many service members. Understanding the make-up of usual care for PT at the system level can better frame current clinical gaps and areas that need improvement. Exercise therapy is recommended as a core treatment for PT, but it is unclear how often it is used as a part of usual care for PT within the Military Health System (MHS).

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Patellar dislocations occur at a much higher rate in military than civilian populations. Past population-level studies have shown that surgical management is as good as or superior to conservative care and may reduce future reoccurrences. Although in acute cases and in civilian clinics, patellar dislocations are usually managed first in an emergent care setting, previous work suggests this can lead to increased costs.

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Background: Whereas ankle-foot injuries are ubiquitous and affect ~16% of military service-members, granularity of information pertaining to ankle sprain subgroups and associated variables is lacking. The purpose of this study was to characterize and contextualize the burden of ankle sprain injuries in the U.S.

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Purpose: This study evaluated the musculoskeletal injury (MSKI) self-reporting behaviors among active-duty Air Force Special Warfare personnel to explore potential limitations of injury surveillance approaches.

Methods: Participants completed a 47-item survey between December 2018 and March 2019 regarding their MSKI history. Participants were asked if they sought medical care for symptoms consistent with MSKIs and reasons they did or did not report their injuries.

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Background And Purpose: Neck pain in the United States is pervasive and contributes to disability. While the majority of neck pain in young and healthy individuals is neuromusculoskeletal in nature, screening for red flags is necessary for ruling-out serious medical pathologies. The purpose of this case report is to describe a young and healthy male subject with a primary complaint of acute neck pain with multiple underlying upper extremity superficial vein thromboses (UESVTs).

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Background: The rotator cuff muscles are critical secondary stabilizers in the shoulder. Increased glenoid retroversion and rotator cuff strength have been associated with the risk of posterior shoulder instability; however, the effect of increased glenoid retroversion on rotator cuff strength remains unclear.

Purpose/hypothesis: The purpose was to examine the association between glenoid version and rotator cuff strength in the shoulder in a young and healthy population with no history of shoulder instability.

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A 46-year-old male soldier reported to an emergency department with severe acute neck pain immediately following a hyperflexion injury during recreational skydiving. He was evaluated in the emergency department, including radiographs, and released with a diagnosis of "acute neck strain." After presenting with continued neck pain, he was sent for consultation with a physical therapist.

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Introduction: Musculoskeletal injuries (MSKIs) pose a significant threat to military readiness and are difficult to monitor due to Soldiers' reluctance to seek medical treatment. There is high risk of developing MSKIs while going through initial entry training (IET), many of which go unreported. The purposes of this study were to identify the contributing factors that influence US Army trainees to not seek medical care for self-reported symptoms of musculoskeletal injury (SMSKI) and establish how those factors may differ by sex, training school, and installation site.

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Background: While advanced diagnostic imaging is a large contributor to the growth in health care costs, direct-access to physical therapy is associated with decreased rates of diagnostic imaging. No study has systematically evaluated with evidence-based criteria the appropriateness of advanced diagnostic imaging, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), when ordered by physical therapists. The primary purpose of this study was to describe the appropriateness of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or magnetic resonance arthrogram (MRA) exams ordered by physical therapists in a direct-access sports physical therapy clinic.

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Background And Purpose: Hamstring injuries are frequent injuries in athletes, with the most common being strains at the musculotendinous junction or within the muscle belly. Conversely, hamstring avulsions are rare and often misdiagnosed leading to delay in appropriate surgical interventions. The purpose of this case report is to describe the history and physical examination findings that led to appropriate diagnostic imaging and the subsequent diagnosis and expedited surgical intervention of a complete avulsion of the hamstring muscle group from the ischium in a military combatives athlete.

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The patient was a 21-year-old male cadet at a military academy who was evaluated by a physical therapist in a direct-access capacity for a chief complaint of low back pain that began the previous day after falling directly onto his back while snowboarding. Given the patient's history of trauma, worsening low back pain, and enlarged soft tissue mass in the lumbar region, the physical therapist ordered magnetic resonance imaging. The findings were consistent with a Morel-Lavallée lesion of the lumbar region.

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Study Design: Case Report.

Background And Purpose: Dry needling (DN) is an increasingly popular intervention used by clinicians as a treatment of regional neuromusculoskeletal pain. DN is an invasive procedure that involves insertion of a thin monofilament needle directly into a muscle trigger point (MTP) with the intent of stimulating a local twitch response.

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Background: Lisfranc joint injuries are fairly uncommon; however, few injuries hold such an elevated potential for devastating chronic secondary pain and disability. It is imperative when evaluating an injury to the ankle or foot to have a high clinical index of suspicion for Lisfranc injury, as physical examination findings are often subtle.

Case Description: An 18-year-old military cadet reported to a direct-access sports physical therapy clinic with foot pain.

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Background: It is common clinical practice to assess muscle strength during examination of patients following shoulder injury or surgery. Strength comparisons are often made between the patient's injured and uninjured shoulders, with the uninjured side used as a reference without regard to upper extremity dominance. Despite the importance of strength measurements, little is known about expected normal baselines of the uninjured shoulder.

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Background And Purpose: Bony avulsion of the pectoralis major muscle is a rare but potentially devastating injury for athletes. Pectoralis major rupture typically occurs in 20 to 39 year-old males. The shoulder region is one of the most frequently injured areas in Judo athletes.

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The patient was a 19-year-old male cadet at a military academy who was evaluated by a physical therapist in a direct-access capacity for a chief complaint of right knee pain and giving way after falling onto his right knee while snow sledding at a high rate of speed 2 weeks earlier. Knee radiographs were ordered by the physical therapist, which demonstrated a large suprapatellar joint effusion. Due to concern for a posterior cruciate ligament injury and to assess for concomitant injury, magnetic resonance imaging was ordered, which revealed disruption of the posterior cruciate ligament without injury to surrounding tissues.

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The patient was a 21-year-old man who was currently enrolled in a military academy. He was seen by a physical therapist in a direct-access capacity for a chief complaint of right shoulder fatigue and discomfort that was present for the past week. Due to marked atrophy and weakness with no history of injury, an orthopaedic surgeon was consulted and diagnostic imaging was requested.

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