Basic body awareness therapy or exercise therapy for the treatment of chronic whiplash associated disorders: a randomized comparative clinical trial.

PURPOSE: Chronic whiplash-associated disorders (WAD) incur both costs and suffering. Treatments that can relieve chronic WAD are therefore needed. Exercise therapy (ET) has been shown to provide pain relief. Another often used treatment for chronic pain in Scandinavia is basic body awareness therapy (BAT). We compared the effectiveness of 10 weeks of twice-weekly, 90-min sessions of either ET or BAT in a randomized comparative trial. METHOD: We recruited 113 patients suffering from chronic WAD grades I-III and several years' duration of symptoms in a primary health care setting. 57 were allocated to ET and 56 to BAT. Primary outcome measures were Neck Disability Index and SF-36 v.2. RESULTS: From baseline to post-treatment, the BAT group increased their physical functioning (median 5, IQR = 15) more than the ET group (median = 0, IQR = 15), p = 0.032, effect size -0.54. Three months after the end of treatment, the BAT group had less bodily pain (m = 17.5, 95% CI 6.9-17.6) than the ET group (m = 4.9, 95% CI -0.1 to 9.8), p = 0.044, effect size -0.4. The BAT group had also increased their social functioning (m = 13.3, 95% CI 6.6-19.9) more than the ET group (m = 3.5, 95% CI -3 to 9.9), p = 0.037, effect size -0.41. No statistically significant differences between groups were found for the change of other outcomes. No serious adverse effects were found in either groups. CONCLUSIONS: The present trial indicates that BAT led to greater improvements than ET for the patients with chronic WAD. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILATION: Chronic whiplash-associated disorders are disabling and incur great costs to society often through inability to work. Exercise therapy (ET) may alleviate symptoms of chronic WAD. Basic body awareness therapy (BAT) is often a component of multimodal pain rehabilitation programs. In this randomized comparative trial, BAT increased physical functioning and led to greater pain reduction and social functioning 3 months after the end of treatment.

Intelligent data analysis of instrumented gait data in stroke patients-a systematic review.

Instrumented gait analysis (GA) may be used to analyze the causes of gait deviation in stroke patients but generates a large amount of complex data. The task of transforming this data into a comprehensible report is cumbersome. Intelligent data analysis (IDA) refers to the use of computational methods in order to analyze quantitative data more effectively. The purpose of this review was to identify and appraise the available IDA methods for handling GA data collected from patients with stroke using the standard equipment of a gait lab (3D/2D motion capture, force plates, EMG). Eleven databases were systematically searched and fifteen studies that employed some type of IDA method for the analysis of kinematic and/or kinetic and/or EMG data in populations involving stroke patients were identified. Four categories of IDA methods were employed for the analysis of sensor-acquired data in these fifteen studies: classification methods, dimensionality reduction methods, clustering methods and expert systems. The methodological quality of these studies was critically appraised by examining sample characteristics, measurements and IDA properties. Three overall methodological shortcomings were identified: (1) small sample sizes and underreported patient characteristics, (2) testing of which method is best suited to the analysis was neglected and (3) lack of stringent validation procedures. No IDA method for GA data from stroke patients was identified that can be directly applied to clinical practice. Our findings suggest that the potential provided by IDA methods is not being fully exploited.

Active involvement and intervention in patients exposed to whiplash trauma in automobile crashes reduces costs: a randomized, controlled clinical trial and health economic evaluation.

STUDY DESIGN: To examine and compare the costs and consequences in a partial economic evaluation of two competing interventions in patients exposed to whiplash trauma in automobile crashes. The interventions were an active involvement and intervention using early mobilization and a standard intervention of rest, recommended short-term immobilization in a cervical collar and a cautious, gradual self-exercise program according to a leaflet. The study was randomized and controlled. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to compare the costs of an active involvement and intervention versus a standard intervention and to relate them to the clinical benefits in patients exposed to whiplash trauma in automobile crashes to facilitate decision-making regarding intervention and resource allocation. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: There is very little known about the health economic aspects of various interventions in the target treatment group of patients. METHODS: Based on a prospective, randomized, clinical trial, data on clinical effectiveness and resources used for the active involvement and intervention and standard intervention were collected for a comparative analysis of the costs related to physical therapy treatment and sick leave. A cost-consequence analysis consisting of a modified cost-effectiveness analysis was used. RESULTS: The costs were significantly lower after 6 and 36 months with an active involvement and intervention as compared with the standard intervention. The active involvement and intervention were significantly superior in reducing experienced pain and reducing sick leave. CONCLUSIONS: For patients exposed to whiplash trauma in a motor vehicle collision, an active involvement and intervention were both less costly and more effective than a standard intervention.

A review of treatment interventions in whiplash-associated disorders.

In recent years, there has been much debate on the treatment of whiplash-associated disorders (WAD). It is not clear if the treatments commonly employed are effective, and concerns have been raised on the available scientific evidence of many of these treatments. The aim of this study was to review the literature systematically to analyze the evidence basis of many commonly used treatments for patients suffering from WAD, both in the acute and the chronic state. A computer-assisted search of the databases Medline (from 1962 to May 2003), CINAHL (1960-2003), Embase (1976-2003), and Psychinfo (1960-2003) was conducted as well as a check of the reference lists of relevant studies. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were retrieved and systematically analyzed with three common instruments of measurement of methodological quality. A qualitative analysis ("best-evidence synthesis") was performed. The methodological quality of 26 RCTs was analyzed. The median quality scores for all three instruments were poor. Based on the degrees of evidence and the practical obstacles, the following treatments can be recommended: Early physical activity in acute WAD, radiofrequency neurotomy, combination of cognitive behavioral therapy with physical therapy interventions, and coordination exercise therapy in chronic WAD. High-quality RCTs are not common in the field of WAD. More research is needed, particularly on the treatment of chronic WAD.

Active intervention in patients with whiplash-associated disorders improves long-term prognosis: a randomized controlled clinical trial.

STUDY DESIGN: Three-year follow-up of a prospective randomized trial in 97 patients exposed to whiplash trauma in motor vehicle collisions. OBJECTIVES: To compare the long-term efficacy of active intervention with that of standard intervention and the effect of early versus delayed initiation of intervention. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: There is no strong evidence for many treatments for whiplash-associated disorders. Some studies provide weak evidence supporting active intervention. METHOD: Patients were randomized to an intervention using frequent active cervical rotation complemented by assessment and treatment according to McKenzie's principles or to a standard intervention of initial rest, recommended soft collar, and gradual self-mobilization. To test the time factor, interventions were either made within 96 hours or delayed 14 days from collision. The effects of the two interventions and the time factor on pain intensity, cervical range of motion, and sick leave were analyzed at 6 months and 3 years. Cervical range of motion at 3 years was also compared with that in matched, unexposed individuals. RESULTS: Pain intensity and sick leave were significantly (P < 0.05) reduced if patients received active intervention compared with standard intervention. Delaying intervention 2 weeks did not affect outcome variables. However, at 3 years, only patients receiving early active intervention had a total cervical range of motion similar to that of matched unexposed individuals. CONCLUSION: In patients with whiplash-associated disorders, active intervention is more effective in reducing pain intensity and sick leave, and in retaining/regaining total range of motion than a standard intervention. Active intervention can be carried out as home exercises initiated and supported by appropriately trained health professionals.