No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This study was done for the purpose of determining if the amount of contact and type of contact someone has with a person with a disability effects attitudes toward people with disabilities. The MIDS (Modified Issues in Disability Scale) was administered to one-hundred and seventy graduate and undergraduate students to determine current attitudes toward people with disabilities. In addition, these students were asked to answer demographic questions along with questions regarding the amount and type of contact they have had with a person with a disability. A two-way ANOVA was administered to determine if there was a relationship between the amount of contact and type of contact and attitude scores. Significance was found for both the time spent and the type of contact. More positive attitudes were found in work relationships and spending a moderate amount of time with a person with a disability. Less positive attitudes were found when no time was spent and there was no relationship with a person with a disability

This multi-centered study examined the prevalence of outcome measure use in physiotherapy practice for low back pain, the frequency and timing of use and the factors associated with their use. A review of 265 charts of clients who had received treatment for low back pain from 53 physiotherapists was completed to identify outcome measure use. / Review of the charts identified seven standardized and thirteen non-standardized outcome measures that were used in clinical practice. Of these, all were measures of impairment except for two that measured disability. Standardized and non-standardized measures were mainly used at the initial evaluation. 27% and 66%. Thirty-four percent (95% CI, 14--50) of the physiotherapists were identified as users of standardized measures. The users of standardized measures provided more treatments (p = 0.0018), and the treatments were over a longer period of time (p = 0.0029) than non-users and the source of payment for the physiotherapy service was from Worker's Compensation, motor vehicle and hospitals rather than from private insurance (p = 0.0000035).

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were differences in mortality, dialysis method survival, hospital admissions and days of hospitalization, between diabetic patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) treated by continuous ambulatory dialysis (CAPD) and those treated by haemodialysis (HD). / All diabetic patients (n = 241) treated for newly diagnosed ESRD in four university teaching hospitals, in Montreal, between 1980 and 1993, were studied (n = 112 began with CAPD, n = 129 with HD). / The data regarding these patients were analyzed using actuarial methods and Cox's proportional hazards model, controlling for severity of pre-treatment co-morbid conditions. Intent-to-treat (ITT) and treatment history (TxHx) censoring criteria of analysis were also used. / At baseline, the CAPD patients were younger and had more co-morbid conditions, particularly cardiovascular diseases, than the HD patients did. / The findings regarding mortality and first dialysis method change were similar in both the ITT and TxHx analyses. The mortality rate ratios varied with time since beginning of treatment. The adjusted mortality rate ratios (ARR) for CAPD patients relative to HD patients during year 1, 2, 3, and thereafter were 1.1, 1.6, 2.9, and 4.5 respectively. The rate of dialysis method change was also greater in the CAPD patients compared with HD patients (ARR = 4.4, P $<$ 0.001). / Both the rate of hospital admissions and average days of hospitalization for the CAPD patients were about twice those for the HD patients (0.21 vs 0.11 admissions, and 4.6 days vs 2.4 days, per month of first dialysis therapy). / The findings regarding mortality suggest that in the short term, the initial choice of dialysis method and any subsequent switch between CAPD and HD for a patient can be made without serious concern about the influence of the dialysis modality on patient survival. However, in the longer term, the influence of the choice of the initial dialysis on patient survival is substantial.

Physical therapists recommend neurodevelopmental therapy (NDT) for cerebral palsy, but its effectiveness is unknown. A randomized controlled trial was undertaken to compare the effects, over six months, of intensive (weekly) NDT therapy and basic (monthly) NDT, on the motor development of young children with suspected cerebral palsy. / The trial soon strayed from its plans, but it was continued in order to identify all problem areas, to allow refinement of the measurement system and to plan a "trial proper" with good internal validity. In this, statistical power had to be sacrificed; nevertheless, the average outcome for the 17 infants on the intensive regimen was substantially better than that for the 12 on the basic regimen, after adjusting for the child's age, term birth or not, and mother's education (the equivalent of a t-statistic with 24 df was 3.49; p =.0019). / Inter-rater agreement, one aspect of external validity, was also tested and proved excellent.

Background. Pain after knee surgery has been reported as a common problem. It is highly ranked in terms of intensity and has important consequences on both quality of life and psychological well-being. However, assessment and management of postoperative pain remain a key clinical problem. / Objectives. To describe the occurrence of pain after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and knee arthroscopy; identify the predictors of postoperative pain and evaluate the consequences of pain on quality of life and on depression status. / Methods. Patients were recruited from nine university and regional hospitals in the province of Quebec and were followed for three months after knee surgery. Time points of postoperative day 7 and month 3 were our prime interest. We used a prospective cohort design to investigate characteristics of postoperative pain and a case-control design to identify the impact of postoperative pain on quality of life and on depression. Both logistic regression and multiple linear regression models were used to analyze postoperative pain intensity and the impact of postoperative pain respectively. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

No description available.

Methodical maintenance and renewal of infrastructure systems is critical due to the rapid deterioration of infrastructure assets under increasing loads and environmental effects and the scarcity of resources allocated for their preservation. A crucial step in pavement management is the formation and prioritization of maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) projects that compete for limited funding for inclusion in the agency’s multiyear pavement management plan (PMPs). In general, many highway agencies perform this task subjectively, and thus a more rational and objective approach is desired to produce sound and justifiable PMPs. Specifically, such methodology should take into account the multiple factors that are considered by engineers in prioritizing M&R projects. This research addresses this need by developing a methodology for use by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) in preparing their four-year PMPs. Several key decision factors were considered and TxDOT decision makers were surveyed to weigh these factors as to their influence on prioritizing M&R projects. These were then used to develop a priority score for each candidate M&R project. Since TxDOT collects and stores data for individual 0.5-mile pavement sections, these sections must be grouped in a logical scheme to form realistic candidate M&R projects. The incremental benefit-cost analysis was performed on the candidate M&R projects to identify a set of M&R projects that maximizes network’s priority score under budgetary constraint. Future pavement condition was projected using performance prediction models and the process is repeated throughout the planning horizon to produce a multi-year pavement management plan. Data from Bryan district, which consists of 7,075 lane-miles of roadway, were used to develop and validate the PMP methodology. Comparison with the actual PMP (produced by TxDOT) shows some disagreements with the PMP generated by the methodology though the latter was shown to produce more cost-effective and defendable pavement management plans. Since the methodology is founded on TxDOT engineers’ decision criteria and preferences, they can be assured that the PMPs produced by this methodology are in line with their goals and priorities.