Challenges with mobility devices for female Veterans with spinal cord injuries.

CONTEXT: The growing number of females entering the armed forces has led to an increase in the number of female Veterans with spinal cord injury and diseases (SCI/D) requiring mobility devices. Limited research exists that explores whether mobility devices meet their needs in terms of comfort, fit and design. OBJECTIVE: To characterize respondents with SCI/D who use mobility devices and determine if these devices are meeting their daily needs. DESIGN: Online survey. SETTINGS: Veterans Health Administration. PARTICIPANTS: Female Veterans with SCI/D who received mobility devices in the past five years.Interventions: Participants completed an online survey regarding their challenges in obtaining and using mobility devices for their daily needs. RESULTS: 101 women with SCI/D participated in a nation-wide online survey. Respondents were mainly in their 50s and 59% were not currently employed due to their disability. Most used manual (35%) or power wheelchairs (34%). Many female Veterans felt their devices were not made with female users in mind and some felt they did not meet their needs. Opportunities to improve the assessment, follow-up, maintenance and repair processes were identified. CONCLUSIONS: Given that some female Veterans with SCI/D felt their devices did not meet all their needs, it is important for researchers to engage women in user-centered design of mobility devices and for providers to be mindful of Veterans' daily needs within all steps of the provision process in order for mobility devices to support overall function and usability.

A retrospective analysis of the impact of Michigan's opioid prescribing legislation on discharge opioid prescribing at a single institution.

This study sought to determine if there were any changes in opioid prescribing habits of providers at a single institution after the implementation of legislation to increase opioid prescribing regulations. Our study demonstrated a 39.5 percent decrease in overall morphine milligram equivalent (MME) prescribed the year after the laws took effect when compared with the year prior. It is clear that these laws have been effective in decreasing the number of opioids prescribed at discharge from Mercy Health Grand Rapids. INTRODUCTION: Opioid use disorder has become an epidemic with approximately 130 people dying every day in the United States due to prescription and illegal opioid overdoses. In December 2017, the Michigan legislature ratified a package of 10 acts to address a variety of problems through several layers of regulations including more restrictive prescribing rules, which took effect in June 2018. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of legislation on the opioid prescribing habits of providers who discharged patients from a community-based academic teaching hospital. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A retrospective cohort study was performed using data from a community-based academic teaching hospital with 303 beds, a medical ICU, labor and delivery unit, and a 42-room emergency department. All patients discharged from in-patient or observation status in the 12 months before and after June 1, 2018 were included. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was MMEs of opioids prescribed at discharge before (June 1, 2017 to May 31, 2018) and after (June 1, 2018 to May 31, 2019) legislation. Medications included morphine, hydrocodone, oxycodone, fentanyl, methadone, hydromorphone, tramadol, codeine, and meperidine. RESULTS: There were 17,227 patients discharged during the first 12-month period and 15,855 patients discharged in the second 12-month period. There were 14,064 new opioid prescriptions in total during these time periods. Total MME prescribed during the study period showed a 39.5 percent decrease from pre- (2,268,460 MME) to post-legislation (1,372,424 MME), while average MMEs/discharge significantly decreased (135.1 ± 321.2 vs. 87.6 ± 187.4; p < 0.001). Total pill/patch count decreased by almost 40 percent. For patients who were prescribed opioids, average MME/discharge showed significant decline after legislation implementation (309.6 ± 427.1 vs. 212.2 ± 242.1; p < 0.001). Average daily MME/patient prescribed an opioid remained similar between the time periods (52.4 ± 37.0 vs. 51.6 ± 35.0; p = 0.21). Significant reductions (p < 0.05) were seen in MMEs for each individual medication with the exception of acetaminophen-codeine and methadone. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Our results indicate that the legislation implemented in Michigan to regulate opioid prescriptions was associated with a reduction in opioids prescribed to patients discharged from a community-based academic teaching hospital.

COVID-19 Presentation in an Acute Motor Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury in Inpatient Rehabilitation.

ABSTRACT: Spinal cord injuries lead to impairment of the central regulation of respiratory muscle activity. This impairs the cough response, which can increase the risk of complications if infected with coronavirus disease 2019. This case describes a 32-yr-old man with an acute traumatic motor incomplete spinal cord injury, C4 American Spinal cord Injury Association Impairment Scale D D, in an inpatient rehabilitation facility who presented with only a fever. Initial infectious workup was negative, and he continued to have elevated temperatures with no other symptoms. He was then tested for coronavirus disease 2019 and found to be positive. This is the first documented case that identifies this potentially lethal disease in an acute motor incomplete spinal cord injury in an inpatient rehabilitation setting. We further discuss how physiatrists need to be aware of milder presentation of coronavirus disease 2019 in patients with spinal cord injuries. Inability to recognize this disease can lead to delayed diagnosis and asymptomatic spread in an inpatient rehabilitation setting.

Paradoxical reaction to increased doses of intrathecal baclofen in a patient with Leigh syndrome.

In clinical practice, intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy is used to control spasticity. After initial placement of the ITB pump, clinicians incrementally increase the dose until effectiveness in alleviating spasms and spasticity is optimized. However, this case describes a 4-year-old male with Leigh syndrome who developed a paradoxical worsening of spasticity and pain with incremental increase of his ITB pump. In this rare genetic disease with a poor prognosis, an ITB pump was trialed and implanted and titrated upwards with initial improvement. However, his spasticity and pain then began to worsen with each dosage increase. Subsequently, his symptoms improved significantly when the dose was weaned. This is the first case that describes this paradoxical reaction in a pediatric population and discusses recommendations about how clinicians should safely titrate the pump for patient care.