Lana Svien1, Sonya Anderson, Toby Long. 1. Department of Physical Therapy, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, South Dakota, USA. lsvien@usd.edu
Abstract
PURPOSE: All articles published in Pediatric Physical Therapy (PPT) within the first 15 years of publication were reviewed to determine research trends. METHODS: All articles published in PPT (n = 262) were categorized as research or nonresearch, classified as experimental or nonexperimental, and further categorized as examination/evaluation, intervention, prognosis, and economics. The data were divided into the following three groups: Volumes 1-5, Volumes 6-10, and Volumes 11-15. RESULTS: During the 15-year period, 64% of all published articles were derived from original research (p = 0.01). Thirty-two articles (12% of the total number of articles) met the definition of experimental, and 136 articles (52% of the total number of articles) met the definition of nonexperimental. Four research articles disseminated results from randomized-control clinical trials. The number of articles reporting experimental research did not show a significant increase during the 15-year period. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric Physical Therapy is a major source of information, including evidence-based research, for pediatric physical therapists, meeting the demand of therapists to base clinical decisions on research.
PURPOSE: All articles published in Pediatric Physical Therapy (PPT) within the first 15 years of publication were reviewed to determine research trends. METHODS: All articles published in PPT (n = 262) were categorized as research or nonresearch, classified as experimental or nonexperimental, and further categorized as examination/evaluation, intervention, prognosis, and economics. The data were divided into the following three groups: Volumes 1-5, Volumes 6-10, and Volumes 11-15. RESULTS: During the 15-year period, 64% of all published articles were derived from original research (p = 0.01). Thirty-two articles (12% of the total number of articles) met the definition of experimental, and 136 articles (52% of the total number of articles) met the definition of nonexperimental. Four research articles disseminated results from randomized-control clinical trials. The number of articles reporting experimental research did not show a significant increase during the 15-year period. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric Physical Therapy is a major source of information, including evidence-based research, for pediatric physical therapists, meeting the demand of therapists to base clinical decisions on research.