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 55 OF 218 · NEWEST FIRST

• OTPilot2019Pharmacologic Interventions for Irritability, Aggression, Agitation and Self-Injurious Behavior in Fragile X Syndrome: An Initial Cross-Sectional Analysis.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAmong 415 people with Fragile X syndrome and irritability, aggression, agitation or self-injury, 180 were receiving medication. Those treated were older, more often male, and had more severe intellectual disability and behavior problems. This does not show medication improved behavior.
• OTOther2019SenseJoy, a pluggable solution for assessing user behavior during powered wheelchair driving tasks.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationA new plug-in device measures joystick movements without disassembling the wheelchair. It matched direct measurements in tests with 13 users. This allows therapists to objectively assess driving skills and identify user profiles in real-world settings.
• OTQualitative2019Development of a Web-Based Monitoring System for Power Tilt-in-Space Wheelchairs: Formative Evaluation.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesFive power wheelchair users and five OTs found a new tilt-monitoring prototype easy to use but disliked the intrusive reminder lights and vibration. They wanted customizable alerts and separate feedback on tilt frequency, angle, and duration rather than a single combined score.
• PTOTSLPOther2019Modular motor control of the sound limb in gait of people with trans-femoral amputation.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationMuscle synergy structure remains intact in people with trans-femoral amputation, but timing changes. The weight transfer phase shows the most critical alterations, suggesting rehabilitation should focus on coordinating muscle activation during this specific gait event.
• PTOTRCT2019The Effectiveness of Telerehabilitation as a Supplement to Rehabilitation in Patients After Total Knee or Hip Replacement: Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesThe telerehabilitation program did not improve 6-minute walking distance more than usual aftercare. More intervention patients returned to work, but both groups also used standard rehab, so the program's separate effect is unclear.
• PTOTOther2020Winter Mobility and Community Participation Among People Who Use Mobility Devices: A Scoping Review.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationMost winter mobility research focuses on equipment and environment, but very little evaluates whether products actually work or tests safe strategies. Consumer advice is mostly anecdotal, and policy rarely prioritizes snow clearing for pedestrians using mobility devices.
• PTOTSLPCohort2020Impact of therapeutic hypothermia on infantile spasms: an observational cohort study.Developmental medicine and child neurologyTherapeutic hypothermia did not significantly reduce infantile spasms in severe HIE, though fewer treated infants developed them. HIE severity strongly predicted spasm risk. Outcomes remained poor with high mortality and developmental delay.
• OTMeta-Analysis2019Global Motion Perception in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Meta-Analysis.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAcross the studies, people with autism were slightly worse at seeing overall movement in dot displays and human motion displays. The difference was small and varied widely by person; age, IQ, task details, and stimulus settings did not clearly explain it.
• PTOTPilot2019Offline effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on reaction times of lower extremity movements in people after stroke: a pilot cross-over study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationSingle-session tDCS did not improve reaction times for lower-limb movements in people with chronic stroke. Participants with poor leg function actually showed slower reaction times with cathodal stimulation, while those with good function showed minor, likely clinically irrelevant gains.
• OTOther2019Improving bimanual interaction with a prosthesis using semi-autonomous control.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn eight able-bodied people using a prosthetic hand, a semi-autonomous system that detected hand movements made two-handed object tasks faster, more intuitive, and less effortful than standard myoelectric control.
• PTOTSLPNarrative Review2019Wearable technology in stroke rehabilitation: towards improved diagnosis and treatment of upper-limb motor impairment.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationWearable sensors like IMUs and EMG can objectively track arm movement and muscle activity after stroke, but they are not yet ready for routine clinical use. Most studies are small pilots showing technical promise, not proven treatment effects.
• OTOther2019Effect of vibration characteristics and vibror arrangement on the tactile perception of the upper arm in healthy subjects and upper limb amputees.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationA circular proportional band of six vibration motors on the upper arm gave better location discrimination than linear bands in 11 healthy people. Longer, stronger pulses made motors easier to feel and locate. Patients also located motors, but this was lab testing, not prosthesis use.
• PTOTPilot2019Wrist-Based Accelerometers and Visual Analog Scales as Outcome Measures for Shoulder Activity During Daily Living in Patients With Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy: Instrument Validation Study.JMIR rehabilitation and assistive technologiesWrist accelerometers were acceptable to patients but failed to correlate with standard shoulder questionnaires or clinical exams. Daily pain scores and a single numeric evaluation were reliable and sensitive to change, while activity ratings showed poor convergence with objective movement data.
• OTCase Report2019Stable, three degree-of-freedom myoelectric prosthetic control via chronic bipolar intramuscular electrodes: a case study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn one man with a forearm amputation, an implanted-electrode controller moved three virtual hand movements reliably over 12 weeks and across arm positions. Performance was slightly less efficient than his intact hand. Not evidence for a real prosthetic hand in daily tasks.
• PTOTSLPCohort2020Long-term cognitive outcomes in tuberous sclerosis complex.Developmental medicine and child neurologySeizures in the first two years, especially non-spasm types, predict lower IQ in children with tuberous sclerosis complex eight years later. Early seizure control appears critical for long-term intellectual outcomes, independent of socio-economic factors.
• PTOTPilot2020A Pilot Study Testing a Novel 3D Printed Amphibious Lower Limb Prosthesis in a Recreational Pool Setting.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitationTen adults with below-knee amputations found a new 3D-printed swim prosthesis easy to use and preferred it over a standard swim ankle. They exited the pool faster with the new device, but swimming speed and heart rate changes were similar.
• OTCohort2020Paediatric motor phenotypes in early-onset ataxia, developmental coordination disorder, and central hypotonia.Developmental medicine and child neurologyBlinded neurologists recognized early-onset ataxia in 90% of children, but developmental coordination disorder in only 70% and central hypotonia in 40%. Mild ataxia and severe coordination disorder overlapped, so motor signs alone can be misleading.
• PTOTPilot2020Accelerating Motor Skill Acquisition for Bicycle Riding in Children with ASD: A Pilot Study.Journal of autism and developmental disordersNine of 15 children and adolescents with ASD rode independently after a camp package of graduated support cylinders, spotters, prompts, physical assistance, pairing, breaks, and practice progression; all improved, but no single part can be separated.
• PTOTPilot2019Dynamic stability during increased walking speeds is related to balance confidence of older adults: a pilot study.Gait & postureOlder adults with lower balance confidence stopped walking at slower speeds on a treadmill. Their instability, measured by step-to-step variability, increased just before they chose to stop. This suggests confidence relates to actual control limits, not just fear.
• PTOTRCT2019EMG-based vibro-tactile biofeedback training: effective learning accelerator for children and adolescents with dystonia? A pilot crossover trial.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationChildren with secondary dystonia showed improved arm movement coordination and muscle activation patterns when wearing a vibration biofeedback device during training. Children with primary dystonia improved with practice alone, and the device did not help them.
• PTOTCohort2019Retraining walking over ground in a powered exoskeleton after spinal cord injury: a prospective cohort study to examine functional gains and neuroplasticity.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationWith repeated powered exoskeleton training, people with severe spinal cord injury walked for about an hour each session, and some gained balance or strength. Brain-to-spine signals did not change, and no control group means recovery cannot be proven.
• OTCohort2019Early childhood predictors of global competence in adolescence for youth with typical development or intellectual disability.Research in developmental disabilitiesA single overall adolescent functioning pattern fit youth with typical development and intellectual disability. For typical development, early emotion dysregulation and negative parenting linked to lower functioning; for intellectual disability, negative parenting and maternal depression linked to lower functioning. Positive parenting was not linked.
• PTOTSLPOther2019The effects of ankle stiffness on mechanics and energetics of walking with added loads: a prosthetic emulator study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationIn healthy adults simulating an amputation, stiffer prosthetic ankles reduced metabolic cost, contradicting the hypothesis that lower stiffness is better. However, the effect was small, and participants perceived higher stiffness as more difficult when carrying loads.
• PTOTCohort2019Movement kinematics and proprioception in post-stroke spasticity: assessment using the Kinarm robotic exoskeleton.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationStroke patients with spasticity showed slower and less smooth reaching than those without, but proprioception deficits were similar between groups. Both groups struggled with position matching compared to healthy norms. Assess timing and speed separately from sensory function.
• PTOTSLPCohort2020Early Intervention Service Intensity and Change in Children's Functional Capabilities.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationChildren receiving 2 or more hours of early intervention services per month showed greater gains in social-emotional and cognitive capabilities than those receiving less than 2 hours. Older children at entry also demonstrated larger functional improvements.
• OTOther2020Autism spectrum disorder polygenic scores are associated with every day executive function in children admitted for clinical assessment.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchChildren and adolescents referred for autism assessment with higher genetic risk for autism had more parent-reported everyday problems with behavior regulation. The genetic risk was not linked to other executive function or social difficulty scores.
• PTOTSLPCohort2020Development curves of communication and social interaction in individuals with cerebral palsy.Developmental medicine and child neurologyChildren and adults with cerebral palsy without intellectual disability reached communication and social skill levels comparable to typical development. Written communication lagged in childhood. With intellectual disability, final levels were lower and varied widely, especially at GMFCS level V.
• OTCohort2020Effects of Vocational Re-training on Employment Outcomes Among Persons with Disabilities in Germany: A Quasi-Experiment.Journal of occupational rehabilitationIn Germany, people with disabilities who completed vocational re-training, combining classroom and on-the-job training, had higher income and more employment days over eight years than those who did not complete training. Both one-year and two-year programs showed gains.
• OTOther2020Sensory Abnormality and Quantitative Autism Traits in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder in an Epidemiological Population.Journal of autism and developmental disordersParents reported sensory problems in 8.3% of 4397 children, and in 53.6% of 28 children with ASD. Auditory hypersensitivity was especially linked to higher autism screening scores, so ask about noise sensitivity in children with ASD or high scores.
• PTOTOther2019Tester and testing procedure influence clinically determined gait speed.Gait & postureDifferent testers using stopwatches recorded gait speeds up to 0.095 m/s apart, and 16% of people showed differences greater than the 0.1 m/s threshold for clinical change. Automated timing gates removed this tester effect. Dynamic starts also inflated speed.
• PTOTSLPOther2019Effects of a corrective heel lift with an orthopaedic walking boot on joint mechanics and symmetry during gait.Gait & postureWalking boots slowed gait and changed hip and knee mechanics. A contralateral heel lift helped some movements but did not restore normal walking. It also increased knee varus moments, which may be risky for patients with knee pathology.
• PTOTCohort2019Belief, Confidence, and Motivation to Use the Paretic Upper Limb in Daily Life Over the First 24 Weeks After Stroke.Journal of neurologic physical therapy : JNPTStroke survivors remained highly confident and motivated to use their weak arm over the first six months, regardless of physical recovery or mood. This suggests therapists can assume patients are ready to engage and should focus on removing practical barriers rather than boosting morale.
• OTCohort2020Interrelationships Between Post-TBI Employment and Substance Abuse: A Cross-lagged Structural Equation Modeling Analysis.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitationAfter moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury, adults employed one year after injury were more likely to report substance abuse at two years. This is an association, not proof employment caused it.
• OTRCT2020Employment in Personality Disorders and the Effectiveness of Individual Placement and Support: Outcomes from a Secondary Data Analysis.Journal of occupational rehabilitationIndividual Placement and Support did not work significantly less well for participants with personality disorders than for those with other severe mental illnesses. However, employment rates were numerically lower in the personality disorder group, and the study was too small to rule out a real difference.
• OTRCT2020Online Family Problem-Solving Therapy (F-PST) for Executive and Behavioral Dysfunction After Traumatic Brain Injury in Adolescents: A Randomized, Multicenter, Comparative Effectiveness Clinical Trial.The Journal of head trauma rehabilitationThe three family problem-solving modes did not differ on parent- and adolescent-reported executive function and behavior scores. Parent-reported scores improved within online groups, especially self-guided online at 9 months.
• OTSLPCohort2019Toilet Training in Fragile X Syndrome.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBPToilet training in Fragile X syndrome is significantly delayed, with females training much earlier than males. Language level and autism diagnosis are the strongest predictors of delay. Males with autism and poor language skills may not achieve independent toileting until their mid-teens.
• PTOTCohort2019The Life-Space Assessment Measure of Functional Mobility Has Utility in Community-Based Physical Therapist Practice in the United Kingdom.Physical therapyThe 5-minute Life-Space Assessment reflected patients' home and outdoor mobility and changed over treatment. Scores were higher in outpatient patients and improved most after recent hospital discharge.
• PTOTCohort2019Abnormal Joint Loading During Gait in Persons With Hip Osteoarthritis Is Associated With Symptoms and Cartilage Lesions.The Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapyPeople with hip arthritis walked with significantly higher hip loading than controls. This extra load was linked to worse pain, daily function, and specific cartilage damage seen on MRI, suggesting gait mechanics are a target for symptom management.
• PTOTOther2019Distance-Induced Changes in Walking Speed After Stroke: Relationship to Community Walking Activity.Journal of neurologic physical therapy : JNPTAfter stroke, people who slowed more during the 6-minute walk walked far fewer daily steps than those with similar total distance but steadier speed. Check speed decline, not just distance, when judging walking activity.
• PTOTSLPCase Report2019A Physical Therapy Intervention to Advance Cognitive and Motor Skills: A Single Subject Study of a Young Child With Cerebral Palsy.Pediatric physical therapy : the official publication of the Section on Pediatrics of the American Physical Therapy AssociationA single child with severe cerebral palsy showed faster gains in motor and problem-solving skills during a parent-led physical therapy intervention that combined sitting and reaching with cognitive play. The mother changed how she played, but the study cannot prove the therapy caused the improvement.
• PTOTOther2019Stretch reflex excitability in contralateral limbs of stroke survivors is higher than in matched controls.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitationStroke survivors showed exaggerated stretch reflexes not just in the spastic arm but also in the non-spastic arm. The non-spastic arm required less tendon indentation to trigger a reflex than healthy controls, suggesting bilateral nervous system changes after stroke.
• PTOTSLPPilot2020Feasibility of integrative games and novel therapeutic game controller for telerehabilitation of individuals chronic post-stroke living in the community.Topics in stroke rehabilitationSeven chronic stroke survivors trained at home for four weeks using virtual games. Self-reported arm function and depression improved significantly, but clinical measures of arm movement showed no significant change. Technical problems were frequent, and the system's owner funded the study.
• PTOTCohort2020Inpatient Rehabilitation Delirium Screening: Impact on Acute Care Transfers and Functional Outcomes.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitationA positive delirium screen at inpatient rehab admission was linked to more transfers to acute care. Those patients also gained less motor function and were less likely to go home.
• PTOTSLPCohort2020Impact of Secondary ADHD on Long-Term Outcomes After Early Childhood Traumatic Brain Injury.The Journal of head trauma rehabilitationChildren who developed new attention problems years after a brain injury showed significantly worse behavior control and daily functioning in early adolescence. This risk was much higher than in children with orthopedic injuries who developed similar attention issues.
• OTOther2020Factors that predict good Active Support in services for people with intellectual disabilities: A multilevel model.Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARIDBetter observed Active Support was linked to stronger front-line practice leadership, more staff trained, and longer implementation. It was lower in services with seven or more residents, groups with very mixed adaptive behaviour, and large organizations.
• OTCohort2020Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Caregivers: Capturing Health-Related and Care-Related Quality of Life.Journal of autism and developmental disordersChildren with autism had lower health-related quality of life than Dutch peers, especially self-care, usual activities, and anxiety/depression. Primary caregivers' own health-related quality of life was not lower, but lower care-related quality of life was linked to their anxiety, pain, and child anxiety.
• PTOTRCT2019Effects of horse-riding therapy and rhythm and music-based therapy on functional mobility in late phase after stroke.NeuroRehabilitationThe trial's main perceived-recovery outcome was reported elsewhere as higher after horse-riding than after rhythm and music therapy. This paper's mobility results showed horse-riding improved 10-meter walking, while rhythm and music therapy had little immediate change and some 6-month walking gains.
• PTOTSLPSystematic Review2020Examining the Efficacy of Communication Partner Training for Improving Communication Interactions and Outcomes for Individuals With Traumatic Brain Injury: A Systematic Review.Archives of rehabilitation research and clinical translationTraining communication partners improves conversational outcomes for people with traumatic brain injury. Joint training of both the patient and their partner yields greater gains in information transfer and support than treating the patient alone, with benefits maintained at six months.
• PTOTOther2020Roles of Lesioned and Nonlesioned Hemispheres in Reaching Performance Poststroke.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairBriefly disrupting a nonlesioned premotor area slowed affected-arm reaching in chronic stroke patients with severe arm impairment. In milder impairment, disrupting lesioned motor cortex slowed reaching. This was a brain-stimulation experiment, not a therapy trial.
• PTOTSLPPilot2019The effectiveness of transverse abdominis training on balance, postural sway and core muscle recruitment patterns: a pilot study comparison across age groups.Journal of physical therapy scienceOlder adults showed the greatest improvement in balance after a single 15-minute session of transverse abdominis training, reducing sway significantly more than younger groups. Functional reach did not improve. This suggests immediate neuromuscular benefits for older patients, but results are preliminary.