![]() Furthermore, technical advances in rehabilitative equipment and non-pharmacologic pain modalities have succeeded in promoting more reliable return to function. These poor outcomes have led to some paradigm shifts with some allowances of early weight bearing and range of motion. Among the elderly population in particular, immobility can result in serious medical complications such as deconditioning, venous thromboembolic events, catheter-associated infections and pneumonia, and/or decubiti. Further complicating patient rehabilitation may be poor patient compliance, pain management issues, and immobility. For example, aggressive early ambulation, range of motion, and weight bearing may fulfill an expeditious return and mitigate deconditioning but may place fracture fixation or soft tissue repair at risk for failure. ![]() As such, the goal of the surgical and rehabilitative team focuses on the return of a patient to their previous level of function often in the setting of competing short-term goals. Orthopedic trauma of the lower extremity is common in both military and civilian populations. This report highlights the experience that our team has had in instituting comprehensive rehabilitation strategies to treat injured service members with complex lower extremity trauma from combat. Further supporting the need for this shift in paradigm thinking are outcome studies of both civilian and military trauma patients that demonstrate the negative impact that psychological, social, and economical factors have on outcomes. As a result, novel rehabilitative protocols to include early weight bearing, continuous passive motion, psychosocial intervention, and multimodal pain management are becoming more popular to facilitate rehabilitation and improved patient outcomes. In addition to the physiological complications associated with the injury severity, patient outcomes are often influenced by other factors such as patient compliance, pain, depression, and the negative effects of immobility. Basic science tenets of fracture and soft tissue reconstruction and healing guide postoperative weight-bearing and range of motion protocols. ![]() The rehabilitation of individuals with lower extremity injury is a common but complex problem for the surgical and rehabilitative teams. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |