The Wolfson Assessment Matrix: a potential tool to support clinicians in establishing access to specialized neuro rehabilitation by capturing important prognostic factors. Sharing more equitable and transparent criteria.

BACKGROUND: Specialized Rehabilitation Services (SRSs) are designed to offer intensive multidisciplinary rehabilitation to patients with complex needs, who are expected to make significant functional gains in their ADLs over a relatively limited period of time. Although national guidelines offer a guidance on how to band patients by complexity, there is no consensus on how to screen patients with regard to rehabilitation prognosis. AIM: The aim of this study was to improve the selection of patients admitted to an SRS, defining transparent and equitable prognostic criteria to guide clinicians' decision making. DESIGN: This is a retrospective observational study SETTING: an SRS in the UK. POPULATION: We included 121 patients affected by a neurological condition consecutively admitted for multidisciplinary rehabilitation. METHODS: Rehabilitation Complexity Scale Extended is used to describe rehabilitation complexity. A short list of potential barriers to rehabilitation was analysed to predict the functional outcome measured by the Functional Independent Measure and the Barthel Index. RESULTS: Older age, a heavier burden of co-morbidities, pre-morbid cognitive difficulties or dementia and a lower function level at admission were the most important variables to predict a lower functional gain. CONCLUSIONS: We have used this list of barriers to create the Wolfson Assessment Matrix as a potential support tool to guide clinicians navigating through the different rehabilitation service options when assessing complex patients for eligibility to an SRS. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT: SRSs are highly expensive services representing a possible step along the rehabilitation pathway for patients with complex needs. A tool such as the Wolfson Assessment Matrix would represent a step forward to help consistency in decision making regarding appropriateness for SRSs. It would also help to set realistic long-term goals with patients and families and support Health Services in the further development of alternative rehabilitation settings.

The Challenge of Reorganizing Rehabilitation Services at the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic: A New Digital and Artificial Intelligence Platform to Support Team Work in Planning and Delivering Safe and High Quality Care.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has posed great challenges in inpatient rehabilitation services, not only to implement the preventative measures to avoid the spreading of the virus in a highly interactive, multidisciplinary setting but also to create a rehabilitation pathway for post-COVID-19 patients. The aim of this retrospective study was to describe the role of a digital and artificial intelligence platform (DAIP) in facilitating the implementation of changes in a rehabilitation service during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: We gathered qualitative and quantitative descriptors of the DAIP, including measures to assess its efficiency in scheduling therapy sessions, and staff satisfaction using two simple numeric rating scales and the System Usability Scale. We describe how the volume of activity and the quality of care of our rehabilitation service have changed when the DAIP was implemented by comparing the pre-COVID-19 and the pandemic periods for patients' [sex, age, co-morbidities, diagnosis, and Functional Independence Measure (FIM) gain] and service's (bed occupancy, patients' length of stay, and staff capacity) characteristics. Results: Bed occupancy and the impact of rehabilitation on patients' outcome remained stable between the two periods. The DAIP provided a qualitative support for goal setting from remote; 95% of the planned sessions were delivered; the time for scheduling and registering sessions dropped by 50%. Staff satisfaction was about 70% for the easiness and 60% for the usefulness, and the mean "usability" score was close to the cut off for sufficient usability (mean score 65 where 68 is the cut off). Conclusion: By applying the DAIP to rehabilitation treatment, it was shown that the management of rehabilitation can be efficiently performed even in the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff satisfaction reflected a good acceptance of the changes considering the turbulent changes and the stress burden occurring at the time of the pandemic.

The role of impulsivity in neurorehabilitation: A prospective cohort study of a potential cognitive biomarker for fall risk?

BACKGROUND: Executive dysregulation and impulsivity can both predispose individuals to risk-prone actions. Although the risk of falls is well established in people with poor executive function, its association to impulsivity is less clear. PURPOSE: To describe and assess the prognostic capabilities of the relationship between impulsivity, executive function, functional capability, and falls in the in-patient neurorehabilitation population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective cohort study in a 26-bed neurorehabilitation unit in London, recruiting 121 patients, of whom 94 were deemed eligible for inclusion. Cognitive-behavioural assessment was undertaken using the short (16-item) version of the Urgency-Premeditation-Perseverance-Sensation Seeking-Positive Urgency (UPPS) impulsive behaviour scale, and the Trail Making Test (TMT). Patients also underwent a functional assessment at admission and discharge using the UK Functional Independence and Assessment Measure tool (FIM + FAM). The main outcome of interest was falling during an in-patient episode, which are routinely recorded in a computerized registry of adverse incidents. RESULTS: Measurements of impulsivity (based on the UPPS-Short form) and executive function (based on the Trail Making Test) were not found to be significantly associated with functional improvement, or risk of falling. Predictive modelling experiments demonstrated that neither of the aforementioned results were capable of identifying individuals at risk of falling more accurately than an informed guess. CONCLUSION: Where impulsivity is present, measurement using structured tools such as the UPPS may be informative to guide individualized rehabilitation programmes; however, its usefulness as the basis of risk prediction models for falls is less likely given the results of this study.

The positive and the negative impacts of spasticity in patients with long-term neurological conditions: an observational study.

PURPOSE: To describe the positive and negative impacts of spasticity across different neurological disorders using the Patient Reported Impact of Spasticity Measure (PRISM), deduce any associations between severity of spasticity and its impact, and assess for differences across diagnostic subgroups. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PRISM, a spasticity-specific quality of life questionnaire validated in patients with spinal cord injuries, was given to 97 follow-up patients attending a spasticity clinic prior to symptom assessment using the REsistance to PAssive movement Scale (REPAS). RESULTS: Patients described a minor level of positive impact and a marked negative impact in the domains of "Psychological Agitation," "Daily Activities," "Need for Assistance/Positioning" and "Social Avoidance/Anxiety." Spasticity severity was, in general, a poor predictor of perceived impact, although severity and localisation of spasticity was modestly correlated with "Need for Assistance/Positioning" and "Social Embarrassment" levels. Despite comparable levels of spasticity severity, people with MS expressed a more substantial impact across some PRISM domains than did patients in other groups. CONCLUSION: PRISM can be useful to assess the impact of spasticity in various neurological conditions although further validation studies are needed.Implications for RehabilitationThe localisation of spasticity in both legs or the right arm can produce a significant impact on 'Need for Assistance/Positioning' and 'Social Embarrassment'.People with MS may experience a greater impact of spasticity than those with other neurological conditions, particularly in the domains of Social Avoidance/Anxiety and Psychological Agitation.Coexisting factors such as anxiety, depression, fatigue and pain should be investigated together with spasticity.PRISM can assist in goal setting and treatment of people with spasticity secondary to different neurological conditions.

The Trail Making test: a study of its ability to predict falls in the acute neurological in-patient population.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether tests of cognitive function and patient-reported outcome measures of motor function can be used to create a machine learning-based predictive tool for falls. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Tertiary neurological and neurosurgical center. SUBJECTS: In all, 337 in-patients receiving neurosurgical, neurological, or neurorehabilitation-based care. MAIN MEASURES: Binary (Y/N) for falling during the in-patient episode, the Trail Making Test (a measure of attention and executive function) and the Walk-12 (a patient-reported measure of physical function). RESULTS: The principal outcome was a fall during the in-patient stay ( n = 54). The Trail test was identified as the best predictor of falls. Moreover, addition of other variables, did not improve the prediction (Wilcoxon signed-rank P < 0.001). Classical linear statistical modeling methods were then compared with more recent machine learning based strategies, for example, random forests, neural networks, support vector machines. The random forest was the best modeling strategy when utilizing just the Trail Making Test data (Wilcoxon signed-rank P < 0.001) with 68% (± 7.7) sensitivity, and 90% (± 2.3) specificity. CONCLUSION: This study identifies a simple yet powerful machine learning (Random Forest) based predictive model for an in-patient neurological population, utilizing a single neuropsychological test of cognitive function, the Trail Making test.

A qualitative description of falls in a neuro-rehabilitation unit: the use of a standardised fall report including the International Classification of Functioning (ICF) to describe activities and environmental factors.

PURPOSE: Falls are a recognised problem for people with long-term neurological conditions but less is known about fall risk in young adults. This study describes fallers' and falls' characteristics in adults less than 60 years old, in a neuro-rehabilitation unit. METHODS: This single-centre, longitudinal, observational study included 114 consecutive admissions to a UK neuro-rehabilitation unit over 20 months. The demographic and clinical characteristics of eligible patients included age, sex, diagnosis, hospital length of stay and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM). Falls were recorded prospectively in a fall report, using the activities and environmental domains of the International Classification of Functioning (ICF). RESULTS: A total of 34 (30%) patients reported a fall, with 50% experiencing more than one fall. The majority of falls (60%) occurred during the first 2 weeks, during day-time (90%) and during mobile activities (70%). Overall, falls rate (95% confidence interval) was 1.33 (1.04 to 1.67) per 100 d of patient hospital stay. Factors associated with increased falls included becoming a walker during admission or being cognitively impaired. There were no serious fall-related injuries. CONCLUSION: The first 2 weeks of admission is a high risk time for fallers, in particular those who become walkers or are cognitively impaired. Prevention policies should be put in place based on fall characteristics. Implications for Rehabilitation The ICF is a valuable instrument for describing subject and environmental factors during a fall-event. Falls are frequent events but do not usually cause serious injuries during inpatient rehabilitation. There is an increased fall risk for subjects with cognitive impairments or those relearning how to walk.

The risk of falling in young adults with neurological conditions: a systematic review.

PURPOSE: To review systematically the literature on fall risk factors for young patients affected by neurological disorders. METHOD: A systematic search of all primary research-based literature on risk factors for falls or fall characteristics in young adults (mean age <55 years) published prior to July 2012 was conducted using 11 databases. Studies that focused on fall risk screening tools, fear of falling or interventions for fall prevention were excluded. Two reviewers independently agreed on eligibility and methodological quality and extracted data. RESULTS: Twenty-three final studies were selected, including 21 observational studies; one randomised controlled trial and one qualitative study. An average of 50.2% of the 2776 total participants experienced at least one fall. Among the multiple risk factors studied, a reduced performance in balance and gait was consistently associated with falls, while the contribution of single physical and cognitive impairments was variable in different populations. Walking aids, wheelchair characteristics and environmental hazards are significant environmental risk factors. The heterogeneity of the assessment tools used to measure risk factors limited comparison across studies. CONCLUSION: Falling is a common problem among young patients affected by neurological disorders, although the risk of falling for a specific individual is difficult to predict and the risk of a severe fall-related injury has not yet been established. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION: Young patients with impaired gait and balance or medium to severe motor disability appear to be at increased risk of falling. Patients who are relatively independent and still participating in challenging activities have an increased exposure to fall-risk. Walking aids, wheelchair characteristics and environmental hazards are significant environmental risk factors. These risk factors should be monitored closely in the young neurological population to help prevent falls.

Pain in individuals with multiple sclerosis, knee prosthesis, and post-herpetic neuralgia: learning from focus group patients' experience.

INTRODUCTION: Pain is a common symptom in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and it is thought to be the result of a mixture of neuropathic and nociceptive pain. Different elements of pain need to be recognized and treated differently, but a clinical tool to classify these components still remains to be defined. AIM: The aim of our study was to evaluate subjective feeling of pain in people with MS, including pain quality description and pain impact in daily functioning. We also investigated which descriptors are related to nociceptive pain and which to neuropathic pain. Finally, we explored if there are differences between the descriptors spontaneously used by individuals with MS and the ones included in the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MGPQ). METHODS: We used focus group (FG) of discussion to collect participants' opinion about their pain. We organized 2 FGs for persons with MS. We also gathered 2 FGs of individuals who had a recent knee arthroplasty, suffering a pure nociceptive pain, and 2 FGs of individuals with post-herpetic neuralgia, suffering a pure neuropathic pain, to compare their experience with the one of the people with MS. RESULTS: Original spontaneous descriptors emerged in all the groups. People with MS in particular used various symbolic descriptors to express their pain's quality and underlined the high impact of pain on their lives. The use of specific descriptors for neuropathic and nociceptive pain in the different groups did not appear easily definable. Finally, pain descriptors used during FG appeared to be different than the ones included in the MGPQ. CONCLUSIONS: Original spontaneous descriptors, possibly pathology-specific, emerged in all groups not included in the MGPQ and pointed out the need to use assessment tools based on people experience.