Here is your weekly NEWS-Line for Orthopedic & Rehab Specialists eNewsletter. For the latest news, jobs, education and blogs, posted daily, bookmark our news page and job board or to take us everywhere with you, save this link to your phone. Also, enjoy the latest issue of NEWS-Line for Healthcare Professionals magazine, always free.
NEWS:
American Academy Of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists Releases Position Statement Opposing Use of 'Degenerative Disc Disease' As Diagnostic Term
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists (AAOMPT) has released a position statement opposing "degenerative disc disease" as a diagnostic term for the cause of neck and back pain. AAOMPT publicly announced its position during the organization's annual conference in Orlando, Florida, on Oct. 25.
"Degenerative disc disease is a commonly used term to diagnose an age-related condition that happens when one or more of the discs between the vertebrae of the spinal column changes shape and size," says Elaine Lonnemann, president of AAOMPT. "These changes are a normal process of aging and not linked to a disease.
The use of the term 'disease' to diagnose these changes misinforms patients and may lead to unnecessary treatment. We believe that this term does more harm than good."
AAOMPT recommends that patients seeking care for spinal pain undergo a comprehensive examinat
Read Full Article
Electrical Stimulation Aids In Spinal Fusion
Spine surgeons in the U.S. perform more than 400,000 spinal fusions each year as a way to ease back pain and prevent vertebrae in the spine from wiggling around and doing more damage. However, reports estimate that on average some 30% of these surgeries fail to weld these vertebrae into a single bone, causing continued back pain.
Now, after reviewing 16 studies in humans and 17 in animals that tested three types of electrical stimulation — one implanted and the others worn — Johns Hopkins researchers have determined that only using an implanted direct current stimulation device worked successfully in both animals and people. Direct current stimulation devices are implanted under the skin next to the spine during the fusion procedure and remain in place for the six to nine months of recovery, and then are removed.
Patients who received these devices were more than twice as likely to hav
Read Full Article
IOF: A Fracture Every 3 Seconds Worldwide - That's Osteoporosis
Marine fractured her spine while bending to help her disabled mother. Lo Lan broke her hip after tripping over a loose carpet in her home.
Both women have something in common. They were unaware that they had osteoporosis, the disorder which causes bones to become weak and as fragile as glass. People with osteoporosis can fracture a bone even after the most minor fall from standing height, or from simply sneezing, or bending to tie a shoelace.
Worldwide, one in three women and one in five men aged 50 or over will sustain an osteoporosis-related fracture. Approximately 200 million people are affected, resulting in a fracture every 3 seconds.
On World Osteoporosis Day, October 20, the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), together with its 250 member organizations worldwide, urge all older adults to be aware of osteoporosis risk factors and to consult their doctors if they are at
Read Full Article
Listening To 'Noisy Knees' To Diagnose Osteoarthritis: The First Human Cohort Study
A new way of diagnosing and assessing knee osteoarthritis (OA) has moved a step closer with a major study paving the way for its use in research and clinical practice.
The technique involves attaching small microphones to knees, and detecting high frequency sounds from the joint components as people perform sitting standing movements.
The signals, known as acoustic emissions, are computer-analysed to give information about the health of the knee. The analysis is based on sound waveforms during different movement phases.
The latest study, published in PLOS ONE, is the first to investigate the use of the technique in a large local cohort of people previously diagnosed with knee OA. The results show that the technique can distinguish between healthy and OA knees, and that it works well both in general practice and hospital settings.
The research was conducted by a large multi-disciplina
