Development of a tool to assess environmental factors to support home care - a Delphi study.

Background: Living in an adequate environment suited to one's abilities and needs is an essential condition to function in daily life. However, no complete tool currently exists to provide a rapid overview of a person's environment, both material (accommodation and auxiliary means) and social (entourage and available services). Our aim was to develop a tool to identify potentially problematic environmental factors and to determine when an in-depth assessment is necessary.

A social network analysis to explore collaborative practice in home care: research protocol.

Background: The conceptualization of the home as a care environment and maintaining a high standard of care requires different professionals to collaborate. This study will explore collaborative practice in home care, needs and expectations of the stakeholders involved, and identify their roles and tasks. Secondly, it will investigate possible strategies to improve home care management and, more particularly, optimize collaborative practice in home care.

Needs, benefits, and issues related to home adaptation: a user-centered case series applying a mixed-methods design.

Introduction: Home adaptation can be a key contributor to successfully aging at home, allowing older adults to remain in a familiar environment while maintaining their quality of life and well-being despite progressing functional difficulties. Although several theoretical studies on home adaptations exist, the benefits of custom home adaptations remain poorly evaluated. The present study's primary aims were to explore older adults' expectations and needs regarding home adaptations and evaluate the impact of individualized home adaptations on quality of life, fear of falling, independence, and difficulties using adapted rooms.

Development and internal validation of a prediction model to identify older adults at risk of low physical activity levels during hospitalisation: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Inactive behaviour is common in older adults during hospitalisation and associated with poor health outcomes. If patients at high risk of spending little time standing/walking could be identified early after admission, they could be given interventions aimed at increasing their time spent standing/walking. This study aims to identify older adults at high risk of low physical activity (PA) levels during hospitalisation.

Barriers and enablers to physical activity behaviour in older adults during hospital stay: a qualitative study guided by the theoretical domains framework.

Background: Older adults admitted with an acute medical illness spent little time active during hospitalisation and this has been associated with negative health outcomes. Understanding which barriers and enablers influence the physical activity behaviour of hospitalised older adults is a first step towards identifying potentially modifiable factors and developing, evaluating and implementing targeted interventions aimed at increasing their physical activity behaviour. Using a theoretical framework has been found to be more successful in changing behaviour than using a non-theory driven approach.

Barriers and enablers to physical activity in patients during hospital stay: a scoping review.

Background: Low levels of physical activity are common during the hospital stay and have been associated with negative health outcomes. Understanding barriers and enablers to physical activity during a hospital stay can improve the development and implementation of tailored interventions aimed at improving physical activity. Previous studies have identified many barriers and enablers, but a comprehensive overview is lacking.

Replacing canes with an elasticated orthotic-garment in chronic stroke patients - The influence on gait and balance. A series of N-of-1 trials.

Objective: To investigate the effect of replacing canes with an elasticated orthotic-garment on balance and gait-function in chronic stroke survivors.

Design: Experimental, N-of-1 series with a replicated, ABC design with randomised phase duration in a home setting.

Participants: Four cane using chronic stroke survivors (P1-4).

Movement goals encoded within the cortex and muscle synergies to reduce redundancy pre and post-stroke. The relevance for gait rehabilitation and the prescription of walking-aids. A literature review and scholarly discussion.

Current knowledge of neural and neuromuscular processes controlling gait and movement as well as an understanding of how these mechanisms change following stroke is an important basis for the development of effective rehabilitation interventions. To support the translation of findings from basic research into useful treatments in clinical practice, up-to-date neuroscience should be presented in forms accessible to all members of the multidisciplinary team. In this review we discuss aspects of cortical control of gait and movement, muscle synergies as a way of translating cortical commands into specific muscle activity and as an efficient means of reducing neural and musculoskeletal redundancy.

The influence of walking-aids on the plasticity of spinal interneuronal networks, central-pattern-generators and the recovery of gait post-stroke. A literature review and scholarly discussion.

Background: Many aspects of post-stroke gait-rehabilitation are based on low-level evidence or expert opinion. Neuroscientific principles are often not considered when evaluating the impact of interventions. The use of walking-aids including canes and rollators, although widely used for long periods, has primarily been investigated to assess the immediate kinetic, kinematic or physiological effects.

The effect of crutches, an orthosis TheraTogs, and no walking aids on the recovery of gait in a patient with delayed healing post hip fracture: A case report.

Accelerated rehabilitation following hip fracture and joint replacement, including early unrestricted weight-bearing and muscle strengthening, has gained importance in hastening functional recovery and hospital discharge. The influence of walking aids on these parameters is sparsely investigated. In this case report, we document the effect of walking with crutches; an orthotic garment and strapping system, TheraTogs; and no walking aids over 3-4-week periods on walking speed, trunk sway, and muscle activity measured with electromyography (EMG).

How to improve walking, balance and social participation following stroke: a comparison of the long term effects of two walking aids--canes and an orthosis TheraTogs--on the recovery of gait following acute stroke. A study protocol for a multi-centre, single blind, randomised control trial.

Background: Annually, some 9000 people in Switzerland suffer a first time stroke. Of these 60% are left with moderate to severe walking disability. Evidence shows that rehabilitation techniques which emphasise activity of the hemiplegic side increase ipsilesional cortical plasticity and improve functional outcomes.

Depressive symptoms are associated with physical inactivity in patients with type 2 diabetes. The DIAZOB Primary Care Diabetes study.

Background: Depression is a common complication of type 2 diabetes, associated with poor disease outcomes such as impaired glycaemic control, cardiovascular disease and increased mortality. The mechanisms behind these associations are unclear. Depression might contribute to poor disease outcomes through decreased physical activity.

Supervised exercise therapy for intermittent claudication in a community-based setting is as effective as clinic-based.

Objective: This cohort study was conducted to determine the effect on walking distances of supervised exercise therapy provided in a community-based setting.

Methods: The study included all consecutive patients presenting at the vascular outpatient clinic with intermittent claudication, diagnosed by a resting ankle brachial index<0.9, who had no previous peripheral vascular intervention for peripheral arterial disease, no major amputation, and sufficient command of the Dutch language.

The influence of methodologic quality on the conclusion of a landmark meta-analysis on thrombolytic therapy.

Objective: We studied the influence of the methodologic quality of individual trials on the outcome of a landmark meta-analysis on thrombolytic therapy in acute myocardial infarction. From each study we extracted the number of patients in both groups who died in hospital or during follow-up. Methodologic quality was assessed using the Delphi list.