Category Archives: Clinical News
November 2021
ShortTake on AFO Effectiveness
Meta-analysis Demonstrates AFOs Improve Gait, Balance in Stroke. In a recently published systematic review and meta-analysis, researchers from Korea looked at the effectiveness of ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) use on improving gait function and balance in patients with stroke. Their analysis covered a total of 19 studies including 434 participants that reported on the immediate or short-term effectiveness of AFO use. Continue reading
October 2021
Feed Your Body, Heal Your Wound
Macronutrients have been shown to play a vital role in wound healing. Proper nutrition is something that every wound care clinician should discuss with their patients. Caloric needs increase during wound healing and it is estimated that patients should consume 30-35kcal/kg daily. Recent reporting details daily…
By Windy Cole. DPM, CWSP, FAPWH Continue reading
October 2021
ACSM Releases Consensus Statement on Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Use
The American College of Sports Medicine has updated its 1987 consensus statement on the use of anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use, synthesizing more than 30 years of research on the topic.1 The College acknowledged that lawful and ethical therapeutic use of AAS is a mainstream treatment for several clinical… Continue reading
October 2021
AAOS Updates Clinical Practice Guideline for Osteoarthritis of the Knee
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) issued an update to the Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) for Management of Osteoarthritis of the Knee (Non-Arthroplasty), which replaces the 2nd edition released from 2013. This 3rd edition of the CPG provides updates to 19 of the 29 evidence-based… Continue reading
October 2021
Isometric Exercise During Immobilization Reduces Return-to-play Time After Las
Researchers from Japan reported that immobilization reduces symptoms after lateral ankle sprain (LAS) but may worsen the range of motion (ROM) of the ankle and delay return to play (RTP). They sought to understand the correlation between ankle ROM and time to RTP following immobilization for LAS and studied… Continue reading
September 2021
Options for Knee Pain
Adults with knee osteoarthritis who had physical therapy, steroid injections in the painful joint, or saw non-surgical specialists were less likely than others to undergo knee surgery, a study of 988,570 Medicare beneficiaries found. The researchers say that while surgery is highly… Continue reading
September 2021
The Essential Role of Human Adipose Tissue
Human adipose tissue serves multiple roles in the human body. Human adipose-derived stromal cells (ADSCs) are an increasingly popular cell source for biologic therapies in orthopedics and a major focus of research. ADSCs are multipotent and can be harvested from adipose tissue… Continue reading
September 2021
Are Those Study Findings Biased?
Clinical research—the trials and their findings—has become more transparent since the development in the early 2000s of clinical trial registries. These trials allow the public to follow trial progress on a registry website including recruitment, changes to the original protocol… Continue reading
September 2021
Pediatric Obesity and Sport
In a narrative review of 28 papers on pediatric obesity and sports participation, researchers from the Wake Forest (NC) School of Medicine identified 5 categories: Increased incidence of musculoskeletal injury in obese children, hypothesized to be a result of changes in… Continue reading
September 2021
Foot Orthosis Improves Tibialis Posterior Activity
Foot orthoses (FOs) are used to treat clinical conditions by altering the external forces applied to the foot and thereafter the forces of muscles and tendons. However, whether specific geometric design features of FOs affect muscle activation is unknown. The aim of this study was to… Continue reading
September 2021
DASH Diet Helps Lower Serum Urate Levels
Researchers from Boston wanted to understand the effects of dietary patterns on serum urate levels. In a 3-arm, parallel-design, randomized trial, participants with high blood pressure (BP) were assigned to one of 3 diets: control (typical American diet); the high-fiber fruit and… Continue reading
September 2021
Can Beer Detract From Benefits of HIIT?
With high intensity interval training (HIIT) continuing to gain momentum across age groups as a regular part of physical activity, Spanish researchers noted that beer consumption was also part of this group’s practice, and they wondered about its impact. They designed a study… Continue reading
September 2021
Fear of Falling Prevalence Among Seniors Varies Widely
In a retrospective, cross-sectional study, researchers from the Division of Geriatrics at the Istanbul Medical School in Turkey wanted to determine the prevalence of fear of falling (FOF) and its associated impact on physical performance, functionality, and sarcopenia, as… Continue reading
September 2021
Toe-Out Gait Decreases Medial Knee Load
Both toe-out (TO) and toe-in (TI) gaits decrease knee load during walking and stair ascent. However, few reports have focused on stair descent, which requires a higher load compared with walking. In this study from the Division of Rehabilitation at the Hyogo (Japan) University… Continue reading
September 2021
Strength & Balance Exercises Improve Function in DPN
Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) contributes to reduced functional status, and lower balance confidence and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in individuals with diabetes. In turn, functional status and balance confidence partially mediate the association between HRQoL and… Continue reading
September 2021
Hearing Loss = ↓Balance, ↓Walking, ↓Endurance
Hearing impairment affects nearly 2/3 of adults over age 70 and is a known risk factor for a variety of adverse outcomes. In this 8-year study of 2,956 community-dwelling seniors in the United States, hearing loss was linked to balance problems, slower walking, weaker endurance… Continue reading
September 2021
Falls in Older Adults: Where, When
Researchers from China did a cross-sectional study of older adults with cerebrovascular disease who had had a fall with a fracture during a 2-year period. They found 768 patients with 815 fractures; 80-84 years was the group most commonly involved. Continue reading
August 2021
Vegans Face Greatest Fracture Risk
Data from the prospective EPIC-Oxford Study show that non-meat eaters, especially vegans, had higher risks of either total or some site-specific fractures, particularly hip fractures. This is the first prospective study of diet group with both total and multiple specific fracture sites in vegetarians and vegans, and the…
June 2021
Ankle Leads “Problem” List for Female College Athletes
In a study out of Japan, 54 female college basketball athletes filled out the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Centre questionnaire detailing all “physical complaints” for 135 days. The average daily prevalence for any problem was 44%, with substantial problems accounting for 16%. Continue reading
June 2021
Judo4Balance Improves Physical Functioning
Falls and fall-related injuries are major threats not only for older adults but also for younger age groups such as working-age adults. It has been shown that it is possible to reduce the risk of falls and fall-related injuries, to some extent. However, interventions that aim to reduce both the risk of falls and mitigate fall-related injuries through teaching safe falling techniques are still sparsely investigated. Continue reading
June 2021
Short Breaks Help the Brain Learn New Skills
Practice is important for learning something new. Repeating an action over and over increases the likelihood of mastering it. But recent research shows that taking short breaks may be just as critical. A 2019 study found that short, frequent breaks were key to improving performance on a new task. These short rest periods strengthen memories of the new skill just practiced. Continue reading
May 2021
New research network tackles diabetic foot complications
Six U.S. research institutions are launching a new multicenter network to study diabetic foot ulcers, a common complication of diabetes and the leading cause of lower limb amputations in the United States. The Diabetic Foot Consortium (DFC, diabeticfootconsortium.org) aims to… Continue reading
May 2021
Supplement improves glucose metabolism in women’s muscle
In a small trial, the muscles of women who took a supplement called nicotinamide mononucleotide for 10 weeks had improvements in their ability to process blood glucose, an important finding in the search for ways to help prevent or manage diabetes in people. Continue reading
April 2021
Dynamic AFO Reduces Pain, Improves Function
Over 2 million Americans visit the doctor each year for foot and ankle pain stemming from a degenerative condition or injury. Ankle-foot orthoses can effectively manage symptoms, but traditional designs have limitations. This study investigated the acute impact of a novel… Continue reading
April 2021
Introducing the American Limb Preservation Society
Every 20 seconds, somewhere around the world, someone loses their leg because of diabetes. A commentary in the March issue of Foot & Ankle Surgery: Techniques, Reports & Cases, a new journal from the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons, introduced the American Limb Preservation Society (ALPS) with the proverb… Continue reading
