The latest edition of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development (JRRD), an open-access, international peer-reviewed rehabilitation journal published by the Veterans Administration, features manuscripts on the following topics:
Characteristics of Veterans Health Administration chiropractors and chiropractic clinics: The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has recently added chiropractic services at a number of medical facilities throughout the country. This study is a first step in understanding how these services are working. The researchers used a Web-based survey to question all chiropractors in the VHA. The responses showed that most chiropractors are similar in the types of examination and treatment procedures that they use. Most of the patients seen by chiropractors were sent by their primary care providers. The most common problem that these patients had was low back pain or neck pain.
Description of outpatient utilization and costs in group of veterans with traumatic brain injury: Planning appropriately for the medical needs of veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a difficult task. A great deal of research exists regarding how much acute care patients use and how much this care costs, but less is known about the long-term health care needs and costs, and iif factors such as the severity of the TBI or the time since injury have any relationship to the long-term needs and costs. The researchers’ aim is to describe outpatient Department of Veterans Affairs health care use and cost for veterans who were at least 4 years postinjury.
Crossed four-bar mechanism for improved prosthetic grasp: Veterans with upper-limb amputations may benefit from this research. Researchers described testing done on a standard prosthetic hook and a hook with adaptations aimed at improving grasp. These hooks were compared with each other and with a normal anatomical hand. The results show that, for untrained hook users, the hooks take two to three times longer than the anatomical hand to perform simple tasks; difficult tasks may require even more time. The results demonstrate the promise of the mechanical adaptation and the importance of a high-friction surface on the end of the hook.
Other articles include:
- Vibrotactile identification of signal-processed sounds from environmental events
- Influence of neurological level of injury in bones, muscles, and fat in paraplegia
- Age-associated striatal dopaminergic denervation and falls in community-dwelling subjects
JRRD publishes original research articles, clinical studies, topical reviews, and editorials from US and international researchers covering 31 rehabilitation disciplines. The journal is an official publication of VA’s Rehabilitation Research and Development Service. For more information about the journal, please visit www.rehab.research.va.gov/jour/policy09.pdf.
Full-text articles are available at http://www.rehab.research.va.gov/jour/09/46/8/contents.html.
[Source: JRRD]