The effects of splinting on shoulder function in adult burns

Introduction

Exercises are commonly prescribed to improve shoulder range following axillary burns, but the effect of additional splinting is unclear.

Aim

To compare splinting and exercise to exercise alone in adults with axillary burns.

Method

Prospective randomised study allocating participants to a splinting (n = 27) or no splinting group (n = 25). Outcomes measured at six and twelve weeks were shoulder abduction and flexion range, quality of life using the Burn Specific Health Scale-Brief (BSHS-B) questionnaire and upper limb function using the Upper Extremity Functional Index (UEFI) and the Grocery Shelving Task (GST).

Results

At week twelve, there was no difference between groups for shoulder abduction (mean difference 0°, 95% CI −22 to 22°), flexion (mean difference 2°, 95% CI −18 to 23°), BSHS-B (mean difference −2 points, 95% CI −23 to 18 points), UEFI (mean difference −3 points, 95% CI −19 to 14 points) and GST (mean difference −9 s, 95% CI −20 to 3 s). Adherence to splinting decreased from 77% of participants at week one to 16% at week twelve.

Conclusion

Shoulder splints did not improve clinical outcomes in this study population and low adherence rates suggest splinting may be unacceptable to patients and makes drawing firm conclusions difficult.     

An altered hormonal profile and elevated rate of bone loss are associated with low bone mass in professional horse-racing jockeys

Horse-racing jockeys are a group of weight-restricted athletes, who have been suggested as undertaking rapid and extreme weight cycling practices in order to comply with stipulated body-mass standards. The aim of this study was to examine bone mass, turnover and endocrine function in jockeys and to compare this group with age, gender and body mass index matched controls. Twenty male professional jockeys and 20 healthy male controls participated. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scans and early morning fasting blood and urine samples were used to measure bone mass, turnover and a hormonal profile. Total body bone mineral density (BMD) was significantly lower in jockeys (1.143?±?0.05 vs. 1.27?±?0.06?g?cm(-3), p?相似文献