Relationship of Age And Mobility Levels During Physical Rehabilitation With Clinical Outcomes in Critical Illness.

Objective: To determine whether age, mobility level, and change in mobility level across the first 3 physical rehabilitation sessions associate with clinical outcomes of patients who are critically ill. Design: Retrospective, observational cohort study. Setting: Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). Participants: Hospitalized adults (n = 132) who received 3 or more, consecutive rehabilitation sessions in the MICU. Interventions: Not applicable. Measurements and Main Results: Sample included 132 patients with 60 (45%) classified as younger (18-59 years) and 72 (55%) as older (60+ years). The most common diagnosis was sepsis/septicemia (32.6%). Older relative to younger patients had a significantly slower rate of improvement in ICU Mobility Scale (IMS) scores across rehabilitation sessions (mean slope coefficient 0.3 vs 0.6 points, P<.001), were less likely to be discharged to home (30.6% vs 55.0%, P=.005), and were more likely to die within 12 months (41.7% vs 25.0%, P=.046). Covariate-adjusted models indicated greater early improvement in IMS scores were associated with discharge home (P=.005). Longer time to first rehabilitation session, lower initial IMS scores, and slower improvement in IMS scores were associated with increased ICU days (all P<.03). Conclusion: Older age and not achieving the mobility milestone of sitting at edge of bed or limited progression of mobility across sessions is associated with poor patient outcomes. Our findings suggest that age and mobility level contribute to outcome prognostication, and can aide in clinical phenotyping and rehabilitative service allocation.

The impact of therapeutic alliance in physical therapy for chronic musculoskeletal pain: A systematic review of the literature.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically determine the specific impact of therapeutic alliance (TA) on chronic musculoskeletal pain, identify factors influencing TA between physical therapists and patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain, and determine the working definition of TA across studies. Data Sources: Databases, including PubMed, CINHAL, and Embase, were searched from inception to January 2017. Study Selection: The initial search resulted in 451 papers. After screening, seven studies were identified that examined the role of TA on chronic pain (> 12 weeks) management in physical therapy settings. Data Extraction: Authors extracted data into tables. Risk of bias was assessed using Cochrane Collaboration methodology. Data Synthesis: Three studies examined the influence of a strong TA coupled with physical therapy on pain outcomes. Four studies identified factors that positively and negatively influenced TA. The working definition of TA was identified in each study. Conclusions: Emerging evidence suggests that for individuals participating in physical therapy for chronic musculoskeletal pain, a strong TA may improve pain outcomes. In order to facilitate a strong TA, physical therapists must understand factors that positively and negatively influence the relationship. Studies demonstrate that the definition of TA remains consistent as it transitions to the physical therapy setting.