Dustin Hardwick1,2,3, Anne Bryden1,2,4,5, Gina Kubec1,6, Kevin Kilgore1,2,4,5. 1. a Cleveland FES Center , Cleveland , Ohio , USA. 2. b Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center , Cleveland , Ohio , USA. 3. c School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences , University of South Florida , Florida , USA. 4. d Department of Orthopedics , MetroHealth Medical Center , Cleveland , Ohio , USA. 5. e Department of Biomedical Engineering , Case Western Reserve University , Cleveland , Ohio , USA. 6. f Cleveland State University , Cleveland , Ohio , USA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To examine the prevalence of joint contractures in the upper limb and association with voluntary strength, innervation status, functional status, and demographics in a convenience sample of individuals with cervical spinal cord injury to inform future prospective studies. DESIGN: Cross-sectional convenience sampled pilot study. SETTING: Department of Veterans Affairs Research Laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-eight participants with cervical level spinal cord injury. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Contractures were measured with goniometric passive range of motion. Every joint in the upper extremity was evaluated bilaterally. Muscle strength was measured with manual muscle testing. Innervation status was determined clinically with surface electrical stimulation. Functional independence was measured with the Spinal Cord Independence Measure III (SCIM-III). RESULTS: Every participant tested had multiple joints with contractures and, on average, participants were unable to achieve the normative values of passive movement in 52% of the joints tested. Contractures were most common in the shoulder and hand. There was a weak negative relationship between percentage of contractures and time post-injury and a moderate positive relationship between percentage of contractures and age. There was a strong negative correlation between SCIM-III score and percentage of contractures. CONCLUSIONS: Joint contractures were noted in over half of the joints tested. These joint contractures were associated with decreased functional ability as measured by the SCIM-III. This highlights the need the need for detailed evaluation of the arm and hand early after injury as well as continued monitoring of joint characteristics throughout the life course of the individual with tetraplegia.
OBJECTIVE: To examine the prevalence of joint contractures in the upper limb and association with voluntary strength, innervation status, functional status, and demographics in a convenience sample of individuals with cervical spinal cord injury to inform future prospective studies. DESIGN: Cross-sectional convenience sampled pilot study. SETTING: Department of Veterans Affairs Research Laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-eight participants with cervical level spinal cord injury. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Contractures were measured with goniometric passive range of motion. Every joint in the upper extremity was evaluated bilaterally. Muscle strength was measured with manual muscle testing. Innervation status was determined clinically with surface electrical stimulation. Functional independence was measured with the Spinal Cord Independence Measure III (SCIM-III). RESULTS: Every participant tested had multiple joints with contractures and, on average, participants were unable to achieve the normative values of passive movement in 52% of the joints tested. Contractures were most common in the shoulder and hand. There was a weak negative relationship between percentage of contractures and time post-injury and a moderate positive relationship between percentage of contractures and age. There was a strong negative correlation between SCIM-III score and percentage of contractures. CONCLUSIONS: Joint contractures were noted in over half of the joints tested. These joint contractures were associated with decreased functional ability as measured by the SCIM-III. This highlights the need the need for detailed evaluation of the arm and hand early after injury as well as continued monitoring of joint characteristics throughout the life course of the individual with tetraplegia.
Authors: K D Anderson; M E Acuff; B G Arp; D Backus; S Chun; K Fisher; J E Fjerstad; D E Graves; K Greenwald; S L Groah; S J Harkema; J A Horton; M-N Huang; M Jennings; K S Kelley; S M Kessler; S Kirshblum; S Koltenuk; M Linke; I Ljungberg; J Nagy; L Nicolini; M J Roach; S Salles; W M Scelza; M S Read; R K Reeves; M D Scott; K E Tansey; J L Theis; C Z Tolfo; M Whitney; C D Williams; C M Winter; J M Zanca Journal: Spinal Cord Date: 2011-03-29 Impact factor: 2.772
Authors: Steven C Kirshblum; William Waring; Fin Biering-Sorensen; Stephen P Burns; Mark Johansen; Mary Schmidt-Read; William Donovan; Daniel Graves; Amit Jha; Linda Jones; M J Mulcahey; Andrei Krassioukov Journal: J Spinal Cord Med Date: 2011-11 Impact factor: 1.985