The present study attempted to characterize laxity in cruciate deficient knees using the Genucom System comparing the neutral to the resting position of the tibia. A quadriceps active technique was compared to a passive protocol at four knee flexion angles: 60, 70, 80 and 90 degrees. Eight ACL and eight PCL injured subjects performed active and passive anterior-posterior knee drawer tests. These tests were performed during two sessions to verify their reliability. Posterior and anterior laxity were recorded for the PCL and the ACL injured subjects, respectively. Laxity was measured at forces of 60, 90 and 130 Newtons. A feedback unit (Biostim 6010) was used to monitor muscular contraction during application of protocols. Results revealed a significant anterior tibial shift (p $<$.05) in the PCL injured patients when comparing active to passive tests. No significant anterior tibial shift occurred in the ACL injured patients when performing the same comparison. The Genucom produced reliable results across two sessions for both PCL and ACL groups. Posterior laxity of PCL injured subjects was similar for knee flexion angles between 60 and 90 degrees. ACL injured subjects had statistically similar anterior laxity at knee flexion angles between 60 and 90 degrees.

No description available.

M.Tech.

M.Tech.

Objective: To investigate the effectiveness of glucosamine for knee osteoarthritis (KOA) through the examination of symptomatic and structural effectiveness of the compound, and to increase public awareness, especially in Hong Kong, about its potential benefits contingent upon the quality of the existing research. Methods, Results: All studies published between 1965 and 2011 in MEDLINE, and from 1980 to 2012 in EMBASE, which evaluated the effectiveness of glucosamine for KOA, were searched and identified using specific keywords. A total of 9 randomized controlled trials out of 672 articles from MEDLINE and 1712 articles from EMBASE were included in this systematic review. The included studies used different outcome measures to compare the effects of glucosamine with other remedies for treating KOA. Similar demographic and clinical characteristics of the subjects between the intervention and the control groups were recorded. The studies were from eight countries. The average age of the subjects in the nine studies were 55 years and they were generally overweight. Though there were discrepancies among the results generated in the included studies, the potential benefits of glucosamine could not be dismissed. Discussion: Factors about compliance, possible drug-to-drug interaction, unknown placebo, subject characteristics (disease progress and severity, age, gender, and occupation), as well as the dosage of glucosamine could have greatly affected the results of the included studies. Limitations on finding articles about the effectiveness of glucosamine for OA of different sites, the cost-effectiveness of the compound, the assumption of the language restriction, and the risks of biases were raised. More clinical trials with comprehensive considerations of all possible factors affecting the results, are necessary. Conclusion: Based on this systematic review, the potential effects of glucosamine for KOA remain unclear. More research of different ethnic groups, especially of people in Hong Kong, is needed to raise public awareness about the effectiveness of glucosamine for OA other than the knee globally as well as in Hong Kong. / published_or_final_version / Public Health / Master / Master of Public Health

M.Tech. / PURPOSE: To compare the effectiveness of Traumeel®S in combination with specific knee joint mobilisation with Traumeel®S tablets and ointment, or specific knee joint mobilisation alone, in the chiropractic treatment of knee osteoarthritis. By comparing the objective and subjective results obtained from this comparison, the most effective treatment protocol for knee osteoarthritis may be determined. STUDY DESIGN: A random sample of thirty patients, radiographically diagnosed with Grade 2 or Grade 3 knee osteoarthritis, were selected to participate in this study. These patients were randomly assigned to three equal groups of ten patients each. Monitoring examinations were conducted on the initial, third, sixth and final (ninth) consultations.

The purpose of this research was twofold: 1) Develop a controlled-release ergometer for the measurement of musculo-tendinous stiffness of the knee flexors and 2) Compare results of the measurement of musculo-tendinous stiffness obtained via controlled-release method and oscillation method. Each purpose was addressed in a separate research paper. Research paper one describes the successful modification of a Cybex NORM isokinetic ergometer for use in controlled-release experiments. The modifications include not only the ones to the Cybex, but also the design of an instrumented leg cuff and software to collect and analyze the data from the experiment. The stiffness values obtained from this technique compared favorably, when considering morphological differences, to those obtained from controlled-release experiments of the ankle joint. The main difficulty encountered in this experiment was the lack of information obtained from low end of the stiffness-moment curve. In research paper two, both techniques were successfully used to measure stiffness of the knee-flexors and no significant difference was found between the two methods, (p = 0.157). However, it was clear that each technique has its advantages and disadvantages in regard to what part of the stiffness-moment curve they are able to measure. Due to the inability of participants to perform the oscillation technique with high loads, this technique is best suited to measure stiffness of lightly loaded systems.On the other hand, the controlled-release technique provided a good representation of the high, linear end of the stiffness-moment curve, but was unable to provide good information about the toe-region of the stiffness-moment curve. / School of Physical Education

With ageing population in Hong Kong, the prevalence of osteoarthritis is expected to be increasing. The most common type of osteoarthritis is osteoarthritis of knee. Osteoarthritis adversely affects physical activities, social activities and quality of life. It causes socioeconomic burdens and has become a more prominent public health issue in Hong Kong. Self-management of this irreversible health problem in the daily living is crucial to those elders suffering from osteoarthritis. However, no evidence-based guidelines on self-management education for elders with knee osteoarthritis have been formed. The objectives of this paper are to review literatures on the effectiveness of self-management program and to formulate evidence-based guidelines on self-management education for Chinese older adults with knee osteoarthritis. The literature review showed that self-management program was an effective measure to improve self-efficacy for self-management and to reduce pain among the elders with knee osteoarthritis. The assessment on the implementation potential of the self-management program showed that self-management program could be transferred to the community-dwelling Chinese elders with knee osteoarthritis and was found to be feasible for implementation in Elderly Health Centers in Hong Kong. The benefits of self-management program outweigh the costs for the implementation of such a program. The proposed self-management program would mainly provide the elders with the self-management skills, osteoarthritis related information and exercise practice in group sessions. There would also be follow-up telephone coaching. Guidelines for implementing the proposed self-management program are shown in this thesis. Implementation plan was formulated to propose communication strategies to initiate and sustain the implementation of the proposed self-management program. Pilot test was designed to test the feasibility of the program. Evaluation plan was developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the program in improving self-efficacy for self-management and reducing osteoarthritis pain for Chinese older adults with knee osteoarthritis. In sum, self-management program was found to be effective in improving self-efficacy for self-management and reducing pain among the elders with knee osteoarthritis. The guidelines on the proposed self-management program could support the evidence-based self-management education for Chinese older adults with knee osteoarthritis in Hong Kong. / published_or_final_version / Nursing Studies / Master / Master of Nursing

M.Tech. (Chiropractic) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

A dissertation submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2006. / To determine the efficacy of the Harpago and celery seed cream in mild to moderate degenerative joint disease of the knee in terms of subjective and objective clinical findings / M