OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY

Research for occupational therapy

Papers an occupational therapist can act on, across daily living, mental health, hand therapy, paediatrics and rehabilitation, each read in full rather than from its abstract.

10,853 PAPERS · PAGE 51 OF 218 · NEWEST FIRST

• OTSLPCohort2019Behavioral Health Service Utilization and Unmet Need After Traumatic Brain Injury in Childhood.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBPYears after injury, children with traumatic brain injury had higher rates of behavioral health need than those with other injuries, but service use did not differ. Across all groups, 77% of those needing care were not receiving it. Race predicted access, with white children having higher unmet need.
• PTOTOther2019Sensory Processing and Maladaptive Behavior: Profiles Within the Down Syndrome Phenotype.Physical & occupational therapy in pediatricsParent reports showed children with Down syndrome who seemed hard to engage or sought intense sensory experiences had more disruptive and self-absorbed behavior. This was an association, not proof that changing sensory experiences would change behavior.
• PTOTRCT2019Intensive virtual reality and robotic based upper limb training compared to usual care, and associated cortical reorganization, in the acute and early sub-acute periods post-stroke: a feasibility study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn people with recent stroke, adding intensive virtual reality and robotic arm training to usual inpatient therapy was associated with larger 6-month gains in arm impairment and wrist movement, but not in task performance or pinch.
• PTOTOther2019Physical fitness and executive functions in adolescents: cross-sectional associations with academic achievement.Journal of physical therapy scienceSeveral fitness scores related to school grades and some executive-function scores in 713 adolescents. Balance did not relate to grades, and this cannot show fitness improves grades.
• OTOther2019Development and Validation of the Occupational Therapy Engagement Scale for Patients with Stroke.Occupational therapy internationalA 12-item scale allowed occupational therapists to rate engagement in hospitalized subacute stroke patients. Higher scores meant more engagement, and scores were modestly related to daily-living performance two months after discharge.
• OTSurvey2019Occupational Therapists' Perceived Confidence in the Management of Concussion: Implications for Occupational Therapy Education.Occupational therapy international60% of surveyed occupational therapists had concussion experience, but confidence varied. Therapists without concussion experience reported lower confidence in all assessment and treatment areas. More continuing education was linked with higher confidence; years of experience and university concussion coverage were not.
• OTOther2019Effects of using activity diary for goal setting in occupational therapy on reducing pain and improving psychological and physical performance in patients after total knee arthroplasty: A non-randomised controlled study.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTPatients after knee replacement who added an activity diary to occupational therapy had better walking pain, anxiety, steps, and physical activity than therapy alone. Resting pain, helplessness, and pain self-efficacy did not differ.
• OTNarrative Review2019Can Occupational Therapy Address the Occupational Implications of Hoarding?Occupational therapy internationalThere is almost no occupational therapy evidence on hoarding, and existing responses often focus on psychology or forced clearing. A client-centred approach is proposed that helps people build safer, meaningful daily activities instead of only removing possessions.
• OTQualitative2019Experience of Occupations among People Living with a Personality Disorder.Occupational therapy internationalPeople living with Cluster B personality disorder described both disapproved and valued occupations as ways to cope, control distress, or gain approval. Socially valued occupations could also bring stigma, overwork, and exclusion.
• OTOther2019Assessment of Usability and Task Load Demand Using a Robot-Assisted Transfer Device Compared With a Hoyer Advance for Dependent Wheelchair Transfers.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationCaregivers rated the robot-assisted transfer device as safer for themselves and less physically demanding than the Hoyer lift when moving a mannequin between a wheelchair, toilet, tub chair, and clinic bench.
• PTOTCohort2019Evaluating the Influence of Social Engagement on Cognitive Impairment and Mobility Outcomes Within the Boston RISE Cohort Study.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitationIn older adults at risk for mobility decline, mild cognitive impairment was linked to worse mobility and lower social engagement. Higher social engagement was linked to better mobility and was associated with the cognitive impairment-mobility link, but this cannot prove causation.
• OTCohort2019Co-occurrence of Sensory Overresponsivity with Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms in Childhood and Early Adolescence.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBPSensory overresponsivity was linked to OCD symptoms at the same age, not to later OCD symptoms. Tactile and auditory symptoms were associated with concurrent OCD symptoms at ages 8 and 13.
• PTOTRCT2019Effects of Whole-Body Vibration on Upper Extremity Function and Grip Strength in Patients with Subacute Stroke: A Randomised Single-Blind Controlled Trial.Occupational therapy internationalAdding whole-body vibration before task-oriented training improved upper extremity function and grip strength more than upper- and lower-cycle training, but both groups also had task-oriented and conventional therapy, so vibration alone is not proven.
• OTSurvey2019Deimplementing Untested Practices in Homecare Services: A Preobservational-Postobservational Design.Occupational therapy internationalNo Quebec homecare service replaced its local bathing-equipment tool with Algo after the project. 25 of 87 services had reached the first Algo step; local tools remained common.
• PTOTOther2019Effects of liaison between physiotherapists and occupational therapists for home-visit rehabilitation: preliminary study.Journal of physical therapy scienceBasic daily living did not differ between older adults receiving coordinated physiotherapy and occupational therapy and those receiving one discipline alone. The coordinated group had higher activity and social participation. This is a small cross-sectional study.
• OTPilot2019Evaluation of conventional training in Clinical Breast Examination (CBE).Work (Reading, Mass.)Ten novice medical students were wrong in 66% of breast examinations after training. They missed 6 of 10 true cancers and falsely referred 27 normal breasts. Existing tests checked hand technique and confidence, not ability to detect lumps.
• OTOther2019Reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the ADL-focused Occupation-based Neurobehavioural Evaluation (A-ONE J): Applying Rasch analysis methods.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTThe Japanese ADL-focused Neurobehavioural Evaluation works as a reliable outcome measure for stroke patients when its 20 activity items are scored on a simplified three-category scale. Therapists should use this revised scoring method to track changes in functional independence.
• OTSystematic Review2019Mindfulness meditation for workplace wellness: An evidence map.Work (Reading, Mass.)Mindfulness evidence for workplace wellness was mixed across 175 systematic reviews. Some reviews reported positive effects for nurse state anxiety and depression and for caregiver stress and depression, but educator effects were unclear and general workplace results were mixed.
• OTPilot2019The role of sleep deficiency in the trajectory of postconcussive symptoms in adolescents.Brain injuryPostconcussive symptoms reduced over the first 3 weeks and at 3 months, while watch-measured sleep duration shortened. Early insomnia symptoms were associated with worse postconcussive symptoms at 3 months. This pilot cannot show treating sleep improves recovery.
• OTSLPCohort2019Responsiveness, Minimal Clinically Important Difference, and Validity of the MoCA in Stroke Rehabilitation.Occupational therapy internationalMoCA scores rose significantly in 65 stroke survivors after task-oriented therapy. The smallest clinically important change was estimated at 1.22 or 2.15 points, depending on method. Relationships with some stroke impact domains were fair to good.
• PTOTSystematic Review2019Need for mechanically and ergonomically enhanced tremor-suppression orthoses for the upper limb: a systematic review.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationExisting upper-limb tremor orthoses suppress tremor by 63% on average in patients, matching medication, but are bulky and heavy. They add about 20% weight to the arm, causing fatigue and rejection. Current designs fail ergonomics despite decent mechanical suppression.
• OTOther2019Validation of the Revised Knox Preschool Play Scale for the Brazilian Population.Occupational therapy internationalBrazilian Revised Knox Preschool Play Scale gave mixed results. Many play items were rated clearly, but some were not rated the same by two raters or did not score consistently. Therapists should not rely on it without item review.
• PTOTSLPSystematic Review2019A Systematic Review of What Barriers and Facilitators Prevent and Enable Physical Healthcare Services Access for Autistic Adults.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAutistic adults reported healthcare barriers including communication, sensory overload, appointments, and provider assumptions. Accommodations such as written notes, quiet waiting, and individual plans were suggested; this review does not prove any single approach works.
• OTSystematic Review2019Review of methods to identify the critical job-tasks undertaken by the emergency services.Work (Reading, Mass.)No standardised method was found for identifying critical emergency-service job-tasks when setting physical employment standards. Studies mainly used surveys and expert panels, often based on past or present work rather than future tasks.
• PTOTCohort2019Bimanual coordination deficits in hands following stroke and their relationship with motor and functional performance.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationStroke patients showed unstable grip-force transfer to the paretic hand, with sudden force rebounds. Shorter transfer times from the paretic hand correlated with better motor and functional scores, suggesting this specific timing metric may track recovery progress.
• PTOTRCT2019Perspectives of people with spinal cord injury learning to walk using a powered exoskeleton.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationPeople with spinal cord injury described ReWalk training as helping them stand, walk, and do everyday things like peers. They reported bowel, spasticity, and pain changes, valued purpose and social contact, and said it was not ready for home use.
• OTQualitative2019"Together on the Way": Occupational Therapy in Mainstream Education-A Narrative Study of Emerging Practice in Switzerland.Occupational therapy internationalFive Swiss occupational therapists working in mainstream schools described their role as bridging the health and education systems. They focused on school-related occupations like handwriting or play to facilitate participation, emphasizing collaboration with teachers over direct clinical treatment.
• OTSystematic Review2019Effects of telerehabilitation in occupational therapy practice: A systematic review.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTTelerehabilitation in occupational therapy is feasible and often accepted by patients, but evidence for its effectiveness is weak. Most studies were small or uncontrolled, and the few high-quality trials showed mixed results, with no clear proof that remote care beats face-to-face therapy.
• PTOTCohort2019Reweighting of the sensory inputs for postural control in patients with cervical spondylotic myelopathy after surgery.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationSurgery improved walking scores but did not normalize balance. Patients with cervical myelopathy still relied less on leg sensation and more on vision and inner-ear balance than healthy adults, even six months after decompression. They remain at risk for falls and need specific balance retraining.
• OTSurvey2019Occupational Therapy Practice in Mainstream Schools: Results from an Online Survey in Switzerland.Occupational therapy international97% of Swiss pediatric occupational therapists collaborated with schools, but only 48% provided direct mainstream school services. Those services were mostly paid by health or disability insurance, relied on nonstandardized evaluation, and focused on school environment.
• OTOther2019Spatial navigation ability and gaze switching in older drivers: A driving simulator study.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTOlder drivers had lower scores on a spatial navigation test and different gaze patterns than young drivers in a simulator. In older drivers, lower Card-Placing scores went with longer gaze time.
• OTCohort2019Differences in continence rates in individuals with spina bifida based on ethnicity.Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicineChildren and young adults with spina bifida who were Hispanic/Latino had lower bowel and bladder continence rates than non-Hispanic/non-Latino peers. After considering other factors, only bowel continence remained lower.
• PTOTCase Report2019Myoelectric signal from below the level of spinal cord injury as a command source for an implanted upper extremity neuroprosthesis - a case report.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn a person with C6 spinal cord injury, an electrical signal from a foot muscle below the injury controlled an implanted hand grasp device. On a grasp-release object test, success matched his usual shoulder control, but this was a single case.
• OTOther2019Reliability and validity of the Chinese (Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong version) of the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand on patients with upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders in Hong Kong.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTFor Hong Kong Cantonese-speaking patients with upper-limb problems, the Chinese DASH measured disability and work consistently and related to quality of life. The sports/performing arts module was less clear.
• OTOther2019Development and reliability of the Korean version of the Feeding Abilities Assessment.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTA Korean feeding assessment for people with dementia was adapted to local meals and gave similar scores when 20 nursing-home residents were reassessed after one week and 12 were rated by two therapists. Lower scores mean more independent eating.
• OTQualitative2019A cognitive occupation-based programme for people with multiple sclerosis: A new occupational therapy cognitive rehabilitation intervention.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOTPeople with MS and occupational therapists liked a proposed group programme for MS cognition, calling it a good fit. They said start it soon after diagnosis, but distance, caseloads and small group numbers could block delivery.
• PTOTSurvey2019Low Back Pain and Associated Factors among Primary School Teachers in Mekele City, North Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study.Occupational therapy internationalLow back pain was reported by 74.8% of primary school teachers in Mekele. Sleep disturbance and prolonged standing were linked to higher reports of pain, but this was not a test of treatment.
• OTQualitative2019Work environment investments: Critical elements for success in optimizing occupational health and safety effects.Work (Reading, Mass.)Swedish workplaces that invested in safety equipment often skipped risk assessment, staff input, training, and evaluation. Investments alone did not ensure safer work, and many processes were unstructured.
• OTCase-Control2019Enhancing general spatial skills of young visually impaired people with a programmable distance discrimination training: a case control study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationFour weeks of one-hour weekly distance discrimination training on a tactile display improved spatial skills in blind children. The training transferred to untrained tasks like size discrimination and shape memory. Severely visually impaired children also improved, but the transfer effects were less clear in this group.
• PTOTCohort2019Disease Activity, Occupational Participation, and Quality of Life for Individuals with and without Severe Fatigue in Ankylosing Spondylitis.Occupational therapy internationalMost people with ankylosing spondylitis reported significant fatigue, which was linked to higher pain and lower quality of life. They managed it by pacing activities and modifying work, but said they received little guidance from clinicians on how to handle this symptom.
• OTRCT2019Impact of game mode in multi-user serious games for upper limb rehabilitation: a within-person randomized trial on engagement and social involvement.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationEngagement did not differ across competitive, co-active, and collaborative game modes. In collaborative play, healthy older adults reported more empathy and more involvement with their partner than in the other modes.
• PTOTSystematic Review2019A systematic review on self-management education campaigns for back pain.The South African journal of physiotherapyMass media campaigns telling people to stay active for back pain improved public beliefs and reduced healthcare use in five high-income countries. The message that rest is unnecessary shifted attitudes and lowered claims, offering a model for community education even if long-term clinical outcomes varied.
• OTOther2019Selecting slip resistant winter footwear for personal support workers.Work (Reading, Mass.)Most winter footwear personal support workers could buy had poor slip resistance on ice. Only six of 40 models met the 7° test threshold, and four of those cost more than most workers wanted to spend.
• OTSurvey2019Children with Tourette Syndrome in the United States: Parent-Reported Diagnosis, Co-Occurring Disorders, Severity, and Influence of Activities on Tics.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBPParents of 115 children with Tourette syndrome reported that 82.3% noticed tics by age 8, 50.4%, or half, saw three or more providers before diagnosis, and 84.6%, or most children, had at least one other mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder.
• OTSLPSurvey2019Neuropsychiatric phenotypes and a distinct constellation of ASD features in 3q29 deletion syndrome: results from the 3q29 registry.Molecular autismHigh autism symptom scores were common in 3q29 deletion, including people without an autism diagnosis. Females had a 34-fold increased autism risk. Repetitive behaviours were most severe, while interest in social interaction was less impaired.
• PTOTRCT2020Effects of Community-Based Exercise in Adults With Severe Burns: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationAdding 12 weeks of a community program with gym membership, personal trainer sessions, and prescribed exercise to standard care improved cardiopulmonary fitness in 45 adults with severe burns. It did not show greater gains in lean body mass or muscle strength.
• PTOTOther2020National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research Burn Model System: Review of Program and Database.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationThe Burn Model System database followed 5912 survivors long-term and records physical and occupational therapy use, but it covers four centers and more severe burns, so it is not representative of all U.S. burn patients.
• PTOTRCT2020One-Year Comparison of a Community-Based Exercise Program Versus a Day Hospital-Based Exercise Program on Quality of Life and Mental Health in Severely Burned Children.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationBoth community-based and day-hospital exercise programs improved quality of life and physical function in severely burned children, with no significant difference between the two groups. Parents reported more emotional and social improvements in the community group, but overall outcomes were similar.
• PTOTSurvey2019Level of knowledge, attitudes and beliefs towards patients with chronic low back pain among final year School of Therapeutic Sciences students at the University of the Witwatersrand - A cross-sectional study.The South African journal of physiotherapyFinal-year therapeutic science students scored 6.01 out of 12 on pain knowledge and 63.1 out of 105 on beliefs that chronic pain justifies impairment. Physiotherapy students scored higher than occupational therapy students.
• PTOTOther2019Upper limb impairments, process skills, and outcome in children with unilateral cerebral palsy.Developmental medicine and child neurologyIn 108 children with one-sided cerebral palsy, upper limb strength and movement control, plus task planning and organization, were most strongly tied to self-care independence. Better affected-hand sensation supported manual ability, while spasticity was less directly linked.