Project description:BackgroundThere are large variations in symptoms and prognostic factors among patients sharing the same musculoskeletal (MSK) diagnosis, making traditional diagnostic labelling not very helpful in informing treatment or prognosis. Recently, we identified five MSK phenotypes across common MSK pain locations through latent class analysis (LCA). The aim of this study was to explore the one-year recovery trajectories for pain and functional limitations in the phenotypes and describe these in relation to the course of traditional diagnostic MSK groups.MethodsWe conducted a longitudinal observational study of 147 patients with neck, back, shoulder or complex pain in primary health care physiotherapy. Data on pain intensity and function were collected at baseline (week 0) and 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 26 and 52 weeks of follow up using web-based questionnaires and mobile text messages. Recovery trajectories were described separately for the traditional diagnostic MSK groups based on pain location and the same patients categorized in phenotype groups based on prognostic factors shared among the MSK diagnostic groups.ResultsThere was a general improvement in function throughout the year of follow-up for the MSK groups, while there was a more modest decrease for pain intensity. The MSK diagnoses were dispersed across all five phenotypes, where the phenotypes showed clearly different trajectories for recovery and course of symptoms over 12 months follow-up. This variation was not captured by the single trajectory for site specific MSK diagnoses.ConclusionPrognostic subgrouping revealed more diverse patterns in pain and function recovery over 1 year than observed in the same patients classified by traditional diagnostic groups and may better reflect the diversity in recovery of common MSK disorders.
Project description:BackgroundRecovery trajectories support early identification of delayed recovery and can inform personalized management or phenotyping of risk profiles in patients. The objective of this study was to investigate the trajectories in pain severity and functional interference following non-catastrophic musculoskeletal (MSK) trauma in an international, mixed injury sample.MethodsA prospective longitudinal cohort (n = 241) was formed from patients identified within four weeks of trauma, from attendance at emergency or urgent care centres located in London, ON, Canada, or Chicago, IL, USA. Pain interference was measured via the Brief Pain Inventory (London cohort) or the Neck Disability Index (Chicago cohort). Pain severity was captured in both cohorts using the numeric pain rating scale. Growth mixture modeling and RM repeated measures ANOVA approaches identified distinct trajectories of recovery within pain interference and pain severity data.ResultsFor pain interference, the three trajectories were labeled accordingly: Class 1 = Rapid recovery (lowest intercept, full or near full recovery by 3 months, 32.0% of the sample); Class 2 = Delayed recovery (higher intercept, recovery by 12 months, 26.7% of the sample); Class 3 = Minimal or no recovery (higher intercept, persistently high interference scores at 12 months, 41.3% of the sample). For pain severity, the two trajectories were labeled: Class 1 = Rapid recovery (lower intercept, recovery by 3 months, 81.3% of the sample); and Class 2 = Minimal or no recovery (higher intercept, flat curve, 18.7% of the sample). The "Minimal or No Recovery" trajectory could be predicted by female sex and axial (vs. peripheral) region of trauma with 74.3% accuracy across the 3 classes for the % Interference outcome. For the Pain Severity outcome, only region (axial trauma, 81.3% accuracy) predicted the "Minimal or No Recovery" trajectory.ConclusionsThese results suggest that three meaningful recovery trajectories can be identified in an international, mixed-injury sample when pain interference is the outcome, and two recovery trajectories emerge when pain severity is the outcome. Females in the sample or people who suffered axial injuries (head, neck, or low back) were more likely to be classed in poor outcome trajectories.Trial registrationNational Institutes of Health - clinicaltrials.gov ( NCT02711085 ; Retrospectively registered Mar 17, 2016).
Project description:Tropical reefs are dynamic ecosystems that host diverse coral assemblages with different life-history strategies. Here, we quantified how juvenile (<50 mm) coral demographics influenced benthic coral structure in reef flat and reef slope habitats on the southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Permanent plots and settlement tiles were monitored every six months for three years in each habitat. These environments exhibited profound differences: the reef slope was characterised by 95% less macroalgal cover, and twice the amount of available settlement substrata and rates of coral settlement than the reef flat. Consequently, post-settlement coral survival in the reef slope was substantially higher than that of the reef flat, and resulted in a rapid increase in coral cover from 7 to 31% in 2.5 years. In contrast, coral cover on the reef flat remained low (~10%), whereas macroalgal cover increased from 23 to 45%. A positive stock-recruitment relationship was found in brooding corals in both habitats; however, brooding corals were not directly responsible for the observed changes in coral cover. Rather, the rapid increase on the reef slope resulted from high abundances of broadcast spawning Acropora recruits. Incorporating our results into transition matrix models demonstrated that most corals escape mortality once they exceed 50 mm, but for smaller corals mortality in brooders was double those of spawners (i.e. acroporids and massive corals). For corals on the reef flat, sensitivity analysis demonstrated that growth and mortality of larger juveniles (21-50 mm) highly influenced population dynamics; whereas the recruitment, growth and mortality of smaller corals (<20 mm) had the highest influence on reef slope population dynamics. Our results provide insight into the population dynamics and recovery trajectories in disparate reef habitats, and highlight the importance of acroporid recruitment in driving rapid increases in coral cover following large-scale perturbation in reef slope environments.
Project description:AbstractInformation on healthcare utilization and costs of general practitioner (GP)-guided care in patients with musculoskeletal complaints is important for keeping healthcare affordable and accessible. A registry-based study was performed to describe healthcare utilization and costs of GP-guided care in patients with musculoskeletal complaints and to predict having higher direct healthcare costs. Healthcare costs of GP-guided care included all healthcare resources used by patients due to a musculoskeletal condition in 2018. Data were extracted from the database with a 1-year follow-up and descriptively analyzed. A general linear model was developed to predict having higher direct healthcare costs. In total, 403,719 patients were included, of whom 92% only received a single consultation. The number of referrals varied across the different types of complaints. Total annual direct healthcare costs amounted to €39,180,531, of which a key cost driver was referrals. Primary care consultations accounted for the largest part of referral-related costs. For all musculoskeletal conditions combined, the mean annual direct healthcare cost per patient was €97 (SEM = €0.18). Older age, being a woman, low socioeconomic status, spine complaints, high number of musculoskeletal diagnoses, and a high comorbidity score were predictive of having higher direct healthcare costs and explained 0.7% of the variance. This study showed that mean annual direct healthcare costs of GP-guided care in patients with musculoskeletal conditions were relatively low and did not differ considerably across conditions. The predictive model explained a negligible part of the variance in costs. Thus, it is unclear which factors do predict high direct healthcare costs in this population.
Project description:BackgroundIt is difficult to gain an overview of musculoskeletal extremity complaints in childhood although this is essential to develop evidence-based prevention and treatment strategies. The objectives of this systematic review were therefore to describe the prevalence and incidence of musculoskeletal extremity complaints in children and adolescents in both general and clinical populations in relation to age, anatomical site and mode of onset.MethodsMEDLINE and EMBASE were electronically searched; risk of bias was assessed; and data extraction was individually performed by two authors.ResultsIn total, 19 general population studies and three clinical population studies were included with children aged 0-19 years. For most of the analyses, a division between younger children aged 0-12 years, and older children aged 10-19 years was used. Lower extremity complaints were more common than upper extremity complaints regardless of age and type of population, with the most frequent pain site changing from ankle/foot in the youngest to knee in the oldest. There were about twice as many non-traumatic as traumatic complaints in the lower extremities, whereas the opposite relationship was found for the upper extremities in the general population studies. There were relatively more lower extremity complaints in the general population studies than in the clinical population studies. The review showed no pattern of differences in reporting between studies of high and low risk of bias.ConclusionsThis review shows that musculoskeletal complaints are more frequent in the lower extremities than in the upper extremities in childhood, and there are indications of a large amount of non-traumatic low intensity complaints in the population that do not reach threshold for consultation. A meta-analysis, or even a simple overall description of prevalence and incidence of musculoskeletal extremity complaints in children and adolescents was not feasible, due to a large variety in the studies, primarily related to outcome measurements.
Project description:Osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, and rhabdomyosarcoma are the most common malignant musculoskeletal tumors in children and adolescents. Today, most patients can be cured. Numerous factors have contributed to improved outcome for these patients over the past several decades. These include multidisciplinary care involving oncologists, radiation oncologists, surgeons, pathologists, and radiologists and enrollment of patients in clinical trials. Better understanding of molecular mechanisms of disease have resulted in studies using molecular targets in addition to standard chemotherapeutic agents, which hopefully will lead to better outcomes in the future. Moreover, new orthopedic techniques and devices as well as new technologies in radiation oncology hold promise for better local control of primary tumors and the potential for fewer late adverse effects. Despite this progress, patients must undergo lifelong follow-up for possible late effects of intense chemotherapy and radiation therapy. We review the diagnosis, prognosis, staging, multidisciplinary therapy, new directions in therapy, and long-term complications of treatment for these tumors. For this review, we searched MEDLINE using the terms rhabdomyosarcoma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, biology, and humans and limited the search to articles from 2000 to September 2011. Additional references found in these articles were utilized as appropriate, as well as references from the background information in current therapeutic studies of the Children's Oncology Group. The same database and time frame were searched for articles written by leading authorities in the field.
Project description:BackgroundHospital workers are at high risk of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs), but outcomes following such injuries have not been well studied longitudinally.AimsTo ascertain functional recovery in hospital workers following incident WRMSDs and identify predictors of functional status.MethodsCases (incident WRMSD) and matched referents from two hospitals were studied at baseline and at 2 year follow-up for health status [SF-12 physical component summary (PCS)], lost workdays, self-rated work effectiveness and work status change (job change or work cessation). Predictors included WRMSD and baseline demographics, socio-economic status (SES), job-related strain and effort-reward imbalance. Logistic regression analysis tested longitudinal predictors of adverse functional status.ResultsThe WRMSD-associated risk of poor (lowest quartile) PCS was attenuated from a baseline odds ratio (OR) of 5.2 [95% confidence interval (CI) 3.5-7.5] to a follow-up OR of 1.5 (95% CI 1.0-2.3) and was reduced further in multivariate modelling (OR = 1.4; 95% CI 0.9-2.2). At follow-up, WRMSD status did not predict significantly increased likelihood of lost workdays, decreased effectiveness or work status change. In multivariate modelling, lowest quintile SES predicted poor PCS (OR = 2.0; 95% CI 1.0-4.0) and work status change (OR = 2.5; 95% CI 1.1-5.8). High combined baseline job strain/effort-reward imbalance predicted poor PCS (OR = 1.7; 95% CI 1.1-2.7) and reduced work effectiveness (OR = 2.6; 95% CI 1.6-4.2) at follow-up.ConclusionsBaseline functional deficits associated with incident WRMSDs were largely resolved by 2 year follow-up. Nonetheless, lower SES and higher combined job strain/effort-reward imbalance predicted adverse outcomes, controlling for WRMSDs.
Project description:ObjectiveThe aim was to appraise and synthesize studies evaluating the clinical and cost effectiveness of conservative interventions for chronic lower extremity musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions and describe their characteristics, including the type of economic evaluation, primary outcomes and which conditions.MethodsThe search strategy related to economic evaluations of lower limb MSK conditions that used conservative therapies. Eight electronic databases were searched (CENTRAL, MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, PEDro, NHSEED and Proquest), as were the reference lists from included articles. The quality of articles was appraised using a modified version of the economic evaluations' reporting checklist (economic) and The Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing risk of bias (clinical).ResultsTwenty-six studies were eligible and included in the review. Economic evaluations of conservative interventions for OA or pain affecting the knee/hip (n = 25; 93%) were most common. The main approaches adopted were cost-utility analysis (n = 17; 68%) or cost-effectiveness analysis (n = 5; 19%). Two studies involved interventions including footwear/foot orthoses; for heel pain (n = 1; 4%) and overuse injuries (n = 1; 4%). Fifty per cent of economic evaluations adopted the EQ-5D-3L as the primary outcome measure for quality of life and quality-adjusted life year calculations.ConclusionEconomic evaluations have been conducted largely for exercise-based interventions for MSK conditions of the hip and knee. Few economic evaluations have been conducted for other clinically important lower limb MSK conditions. A matrix presentation of costs mapped with outcomes indicated increasing costs with either no difference or improvements in clinical effectiveness. The majority of economic evaluations were of good reporting quality, as were the accompanying clinical studies.
Project description:BackgroundVariation in occupational exposure is assumed to have a protective effect against the development of musculoskeletal complaints (MSC), but this common assumption is not strongly supported by the literature. Among musicians, who have a high prevalence of MSC, many play more than one type of instrument (multi-instrumentalism) for many hours a day. Since multi-instrumentalism implies greater variation in ergonomic load of specific musculoskeletal areas than mono-instrumentalism, musicians are a suitable study population to test whether the above assumption is true.PurposeTo investigate in a sample of professional bass players whether multi-instrumentalists are less likely to have MSC than mono-instrumentalists.MethodsParticipants were 141 professional and professional student double bassists and bass guitarists. Demographic, MSC and exposure characteristics were collected online with self-constructed and existing questionnaires. Logistic regression analysis was used to test the association between multi- versus mono-instrumentalism and MSC, adjusted for confounders.ResultsThe prevalence of having MSC in the neck, back, right shoulder area and both wrist areas did not differ significantly between the two groups. Further analysis revealed that the likelihood of having MSC in the left shoulder area was higher in multi-instrumentalists compared to mono-instrumentalists (Odds ratio 0.30, 95% CI 0.119-0.753, p = 0.010).ConclusionIn this sample of professional bass players, no protective effect of multi-instrumentalism against MSC was found. Multi-instrumentalism was associated with a higher prevalence of MSC in the left shoulder. This result challenges theoretical and clinical assumptions in occupational and pain medicine.
Project description:The diagnostic accuracy of differential diagnoses generated by artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, including the generative pretrained transformer 3 (GPT-3) chatbot (ChatGPT-3) is unknown. This study evaluated the accuracy of differential-diagnosis lists generated by ChatGPT-3 for clinical vignettes with common chief complaints. General internal medicine physicians created clinical cases, correct diagnoses, and five differential diagnoses for ten common chief complaints. The rate of correct diagnosis by ChatGPT-3 within the ten differential-diagnosis lists was 28/30 (93.3%). The rate of correct diagnosis by physicians was still superior to that by ChatGPT-3 within the five differential-diagnosis lists (98.3% vs. 83.3%, p = 0.03). The rate of correct diagnosis by physicians was also superior to that by ChatGPT-3 in the top diagnosis (53.3% vs. 93.3%, p < 0.001). The rate of consistent differential diagnoses among physicians within the ten differential-diagnosis lists generated by ChatGPT-3 was 62/88 (70.5%). In summary, this study demonstrates the high diagnostic accuracy of differential-diagnosis lists generated by ChatGPT-3 for clinical cases with common chief complaints. This suggests that AI chatbots such as ChatGPT-3 can generate a well-differentiated diagnosis list for common chief complaints. However, the order of these lists can be improved in the future.