Rehabilitative management of pelvic fractures: a literature-based update.

A comprehensive rehabilitation program is required after Pelvic Fracture (PF). In a PF rehabilitation setting an effective treatment and a proper management of complications is supplied by an appropriate and reliable clinical assessment. In this literature-based update, we search on MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic reviews to find articles, scientific society guidelines and practioners experiences defining the rehabilitative management of clinically PF outcomes. Based on literature evidences and expert opinions, a set of key topics was collated to generate advices and recommendations to put into daily practice. Even if there are no high-quality evidence for rehabilitative interventions after PF in terms of duration and modality of therapy, rehabilitation setting, care pathways, and long-term functional outcomes, it is strongly recommended an early multidisciplinary intervention to improve recovery from PF.

Short-wave diathermy in the clinical management of musculoskeletal disorders: a pilot observational study.

Musculoskeletal disorders are the most common cause of pain and functional limitation in the general population. The study aim was  to evaluate short-wave diathermy (SWD) effects on pain and quality of life in people with musculoskeletal disorders. Eighty participants (31 men, mean age 56 ± 12.49 years) were enrolled, recruiting from outpatient clinics at the Rehabilitation Unit, University Hospital, Padova. Inclusion criteria were pain lasting more than 15 days, pain visual analog scale (VAS) score higher than 50/100 mm, and a diagnosis of osteoarthritis, neck/back pain, or tendinopathies. All participants underwent ten sessions of percutaneous SWD, 3 times/week. Each session lasted 15-20 min, with frequencies of 4 or 8 MHz and heat intensity between 40 and 60 W. Outcomes were assessed before and after treatment. Primary outcome was pain reduction, evaluated by short form McGill pain questionnaire, which includes VAS and present pain intensity (PPI). Secondary outcome was improvement in social and work-related activity limitations. Participants were grouped based on classification of pain [nociceptive and neuropathic pain (group A) vs nociceptive only (group B)]. VAS and PPI improved significantly (p < 0.01). No difference in pain reduction (VAS and PPI) emerged between the groups. Limitations due to pain in work-related and non-work-related activities decreased (p < 0.01); use of pain medications was reduced at T1 vs T0 (p < 0.01). Our results suggest that SWD is effective in reducing musculoskeletal pain in the short term, providing relief and improving quality of life.

Analysis of Dental Malocclusion and Neuromotor Control in Young Healthy Subjects through New Evaluation Tools.

The presence of a correlation between stomatognathic and postural systems has been investigated by different authors trying to identify a possible influence of dental occlusion on body posture and balance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between dental occlusion and neuromuscular control in a healthy young population using modern evaluation tools. 25 subjects (9 males and 16 females, aged 23 to 44) were evaluated for dental occlusion, particularly in relation to overjet and overbite parameters, anterior and posterior crossbite, scissor bite, mandibular crowding, molar and canine class, and deviation of the median dental line. Neuromotor control was assessed using two different types of stabilometric platforms in both monopodalic and bipodalic equilibriums (Prokin-B and MF-Stability, Tecnobody, Italy). All subjects were evaluated with and without cotton rolls positioned between the upper and lower arches at the premolar level in order to temporarily eliminate any pathological contact. In all 25 subjects, no statistically significant differences were revealed between the evaluations performed with and without cotton rolls in all the analyzed conditions (in static, in dynamics, with open and closed eyes). This study did not find a significant correlation between dental occlusion and neuromuscular control in a young and healthy population.