OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effects of wearing a functional knee brace and muscle fatigue on hamstring reflex time in subjects with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) deficiency. DESIGN Repeated-measures clinical trial. SETTING Outpatient physical therapy department. PARTICIPANTS Sixteen subjects with ACL deficiency. INTERVENTION Subjects tested with and without a functional knee brace befo...

Brace is one of the most commonly used interventions to manage osteoporotic vertebral fracture. However, its authentic effectiveness remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of brace in patients with osteoporotic vertebral fractures. We conducted a literature review and meta-analysis following the guideline and handbook of the Cochrane collaboration. Ten published ...

Background: Bracing concepts in use today for the treatment of scoliosis include symmetric and asymmetric hard braces usually made of polyethylene (PE) and soft braces. The plaster cast method worldwide seems to be the most practiced technique for the construction of hard braces at the moment. CAD (Computer Aided Design) systems are available which allow brace adjustments without plaster. Anoth...

Materials and methods 2 asymptomatic adults, with similar physical feature. They wear a thoracolumbar bivalve brace, made with the same protocol (using CAD CAM) for reproducibility. We design the braces according to the principles of the brace immobilization: a good grip on the waist and overall tightening supports on the abdomen, thorax and lumbar. We use the gait analysis system Vicon. To use...

STUDY DESIGN Literature review. OBJECTIVE To establish consistent parameters for future adolescent idiopathic scoliosis bracing studies so that valid and reliable comparisons can be made. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Current bracing literature lacks consistency for both inclusion criteria and the definitions of brace effectiveness. METHODS A total of 32 brace treatment studies and the curre...

BACKGROUND First author attempted to analyse medical records of patients with idiopathic scoliosis for compliance with the Scoliosis Research Society brace studies criteria. A retrospective analysis of medical records of 2705 girls treated from 1989 to 2002 was carried out. METHODS Age, Cobb, Risser and menarchal status were analyzed for compliance with the Scoliosis Research Society brace st...

BACKGROUND As a result of scientific and medical professionals gaining interest in Stress and Health Related Quality of Life (HRQL), the aim of our research is, thus, to validate into Spanish the German questionnaire Bad Sobernheim Stress Questionnaire (BSSQ) (mit Korsett), for adolescents wearing braces. METHODS The methodology used adheres to literature on trans-cultural adaptation by doing...

Previously, we reported a prospective study of 30 patients with unicompartmental osteoarthritis of the knee treated nonoperatively with an unloader brace and average follow-up of 2.7 years. Although the initial study suggested short-term benefit according to pain and function measures, the objective of the current study was to evaluate these same patients via telephone questionnaire to determin...

BACKGROUND The BSSQbrace questionnaire has been shown to be reliable with good internal consistency and reproducibility estimating the stress scoliosis patients have whilst wearing their brace. Eight questions are provided focussing on this topic. A max. score of 24 can be achieved (from 0 for most stress to 24 for no stress). The subdivision of the score values is: 0-8 (strong stress), 9-16 (m...

BACKGROUND Previous studies have shown that eccentric training has a positive effect on chronic Achilles tendinopathy. A new strategy for the treatment of chronic Achilles tendinopathy is the AirHeel brace. HYPOTHESIS AirHeel brace treatment improves the clinical outcome of patients with chronic Achilles tendinopathy. The combination of the AirHeel brace and an eccentric training program has ...