No description available.

A dissertation presented in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Technikon Natal, 2000. / There has previously been a significant number of clinical trials supporting the efficacy of manipulation for the treatment of low back pain. In addition, the use of manipulation for the treatment of sacroiliac syndrome is well recognised. However, the management protocols involving the use of orthotics, used alone, or in combination with manipulation were found to be controversial. Orthotics seem to be frequently used in the clinical setting and yet there is a paucity of controlled clinical research advocating their application. The aim of this study was to determine the relative effectiveness of chiropractic manipulation used in combination with a non-stabilising sacroiliac orthotic (strapping) versus chiropractic manipulation used in combination with a stabilising sacroiliac orthotic in the treatment of sacroiliac syndrome. It was hypothesised that both treatment protocols would be effective in the management of sacroiliac syndrome, and that manipulation used in combination with a stabilising sacroiliac orthotic over a two week period would be more effective than manipulation used in combination with a non-stabilising sacroiliac orthotic, in terms of subjective and objective clinical f-Indings. The study design chosen was a comparative, randomised, controlled clinical trial. Sixty consecutive patients diagnosed with sacroiliac syndrome were randomly assigned either to the group receiving manipulation used in combination with a non-stabilising sacroiliac orthotic or the group receiving manipulation used in combination with a stabilising sacroiliac orthotic. The age range of patients extencled from eighteen to forty-nine, and included thirty-one males and thirty-three females. Statistically patients\x8F\x8F / M

A dissertation in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2002. / Low back pain (LBP) is a significant public health problem that has had a marked impact on quality of life and on health care costs (Weiner, et al. 2000:450). Toussaint, et al. (1999:134) established that the prevalence of sacroiliac joint dysfunction in the population has been noted in the medical literature to be between 19.3% and 47.9%. There is a lack of consensus among medical practitioners, chiropractors, osteopaths, physiotherapists and others as to the most appropriate therapy or management for sacroiliac syndrome. This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of manipulation of the symptomatic sacroiliac joint compared to manipulation of both the symptomatic and the asymptomatic sacroiliac joints in the treatment of unilateral sacroiliac syndrome. Anecdotal evidence would seem to indicate that the direction of the chiropractic manipulation is immaterial to clinical improvement (Till, 1994). Bilateral manipulation of the symptomatic and asymptomatic joints has been used in clinical practice in an attempt to increase the efficacy of chiropractic management for unilateral sacroiliac joint syndrome (Till, 1994, Lewis, 2001 and Nook, 2000). Walker (1992:914) was of the opinion that 'Unless reliability and validity of assessments and effectiveness of treatment procedures can be demonstrated, clinicians should temper their claims of measurement of, and direct effects on, the sacroiliac joint.' This randomized, comparative clinical trial consisted of sixty voluntary subjects each suffering from sacroiliac joint syndrome. There were two groups of thirty subjects, each of whom received five treatments within a three week period. Group one received manipulation of the symptomatic sacroiliac joint / M

Dissertation submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2005 / Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) is a common knee problem that affects 25% of the general population. PFPS generally affects adolescents, especially females, young adults and sports men and women. PFPS is defined as anterior knee pain arising from dysfunction of the patellofemoral articulation including its connective and contractile tissues. Literature suggests an extensor mechanism dysfunction as the most probable etiology. The majority of literature suggests that PFPS is associated with restricted patella motion, especially medial glide, resulting from a tight lateral retinaculum and/or tight iliotibial band. The beneficial effect of patella mobilization in the management of PFPS, suggested by the results of a number of studies, further suggests that restricted patella motion may be an integral feature of PFPS, as a causative and/or perpetuating factor. The purpose of this study was to assess the associations between the severity of PFPS (in terms of the objective and subjective clinical measures) and patella mobility (direction of mobility loss and degree of motion loss). / M

A dissertation presented in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2005. / The paucity of clinical research into the cause of canine hip dysplasia, efficacy and effects of the different treatment protocols available for the management of symptoms, as well as the differing presentations, has led to a continued variation in standardized care for this condition. The aim of this study was to contribute further information on the use of instrument manipulation as an alternative or adjunctive means of managing the symptoms of canine hip dysplasia. Both manual and instrument manipulation have effectively been used in the short-term management of human musculoskeletal pconditions, it was hypothesized that the use of instrument manipulation would benefit the canine patient. The use of human based studies was a guideline, as no previous chiropractic studies have been conducted on the canine subject. / M

This dissertation is submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, 2003. / Knee joint pathologies, in general, are associated with a loss of knee-extensor muscle strength. This weakness has been attributed to arthrogenic muscle inhibition (AMI). Manipulation of the sacroiliac (SI) has been shown to significantly reduce AMI and increase the strength in the quadriceps muscle group. Although both the knee and SI joints have been linked to AMI of the quadriceps muscle group, no studies have been conducted showing that manipulating the tibio-femoral (knee) joint has any effect on quadriceps muscle strength or AMI. The purpose of this study was therefore to verify whether manipulation of the knee (tibio-femoral) joint is as effective as SI joint manipulation in increasing quadriceps muscle strength in PFPS patients. This study also investigated the effect of combining manipulative therapy of the tibio-femoral and SI joints on quadriceps muscle strength in PFPS patients. / M

Early intervention is a critical component of efforts to optimize outcomes for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families. One promising target for early intervention is joint attention, an early developing social-cognitive competency that is foundational to many other social, communicative, and cognitive skills; and a core deficit in children with ASD. While joint attention interventions are gaining interest among researchers, many are limited by their failure to situate joint attention development within the caregiver-child relationship and to adequately examine child and caregiver outcomes and transactional processes. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in child and caregiver joint attention actions and transactions across the course of a parent-mediated joint attention intervention. The Child-Caregiver Joint Attention coding system was developed and applied to videotaped caregiver-child interaction sessions from all phases of the Joint Attention Mediated Learning intervention. Participants included five mothers and their toddler aged sons. Joint attention actions examined included gaze alternations, pointing, showing, joint attention responding, and joint attention initiating for both children and caregivers. Four of five children demonstrated increases in gaze alternations, joint attention responding, and joint attention initiating by the end of the intervention. Three caregivers demonstrated increases in gaze alternations and joint attention responding, and four displayed increases in joint attention initiating. There was no clear pattern of change across children or caregivers in pointing or showing. All participants, with the exception of one caregiver, responded to a higher percentage of opportunities for joint attention in the final intervention phase than in Baseline, suggesting that most participants became more responsive to their social partners by the end of the intervention. The findings of this study suggest that parent-mediated joint attention interventions have the potential to promote changes in both child and caregiver joint attention actions and transactional relationships. Future research should continue to examine outcomes for both children and primary caregivers and changes in child-caregiver transactions over the course of different types of joint attention interventions in order to inform intervention development and selection, and explore mechanisms for change.

Rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a major clinical problem, leading to instability of the knee joint. This is especially unfortunate, as ACL failure is most commonly encountered in sports, where it affects healthy, younger people who wish to pursue an active life-style. Due to the frequency and potential severity of injuries, a need still exists for information on the biomechanical properties of ligaments under loading conditions, which occur at the time of trauma. The aims of this study were to examine the effect of different loading conditions on the mechanical properties and the appearance of the ruptured ligaments when viewed by scanning electron microscopy. Examining the appearance of collagen fibres at these surfaces should help us understand more about what actually happens during and after the fracture process. This study represents a combination of the two fields of tissue mechanics and fracture morphology for understanding the failure of biological tissues. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)t.

Little is known about the anti-inflammatory activity of creatine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of creatine supplements in canine chondrocytes (CnC). CnC were stimulated with IL-1β. Release of PGE2 and TNFa was measured using ELISA. Changes in oxylipin profile was assessed using HPLC/MS. Expression of COX-2 and phosphorylated NF-kB was performed using western blot. Changes in above inflammatory responses were examined following treatment with various creatine compounds including the metabolite creatinine. COX inhibitor, Rimadyl, substantially reduced PGE2 release, despite increasing both TNFa release and COX-2 expression. All creatine compounds, including creatinine, reduced PGE2, COX-2 and TNFa in stimulated CnC. In addition, all the compounds examined reduced phosphorylated NF-kB expression. The creatine compounds were also able to interfere with the production of several oxylipins in response to IL-1β. Creatine supplements may have a beneficial role in preventing inflammation within the joint and other tissues. / May 2016

M.Tech.