Suchergebnisse

BACKGROUND: Overutilization of diagnostic imaging is associated with poor outcomes and increased costs. Physical therapists demonstrate the ability to order diagnostic imaging safely and appropriately, and early access to physical therapy reduces unnecessary imaging, lowers healthcare costs, and improves outcomes. HYPOTHESIS/PURPOSE: The primary purpose of this study was to compare rates of compliance with the National Committee for Quality Assurance – Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) recommendations for diagnostic imaging in low back pain between physical therapists and primary care providers in young, athletic patients. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHODS: Military Health System Data Repository (MDR) data from January 2019 to May 2020 was reviewed for compliance with the low back pain HEDIS recommendation. The low back pain imaging HEDIS measure identifies the percentage of patients who did not have an imaging study (plain X-ray, MRI, CT Scan) ordered on the first encounter with a diagnosis of low back pain or in the 28 days following that first diagnosis. Chi-square tests compared HEDIS compliance rates, with α = 0.05 set a priori. RESULTS: From January 2019 to May 2020, in patients age 18-24, the MDR database identified 1,845 total visits for LBP identified in the Physical Therapy Clinic and 467 total visits for LBP in the Primary Care Clinic. In the Physical Therapy Clinic, 96.7% of encounters did not have imaging ordered within the first 28 days of onset of symptoms, compared with 82.0% in the Primary Care Clinic (p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Utilizing data from a national standardized healthcare performance measure, physical therapists practicing in a direct-access setting were significantly more likely than primary care providers to adhere to guidelines for low back pain imaging in young, athletic patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3.

INTRODUCTION: There is a large incidence of shoulder instability among active young athletes and military personnel. Shoulder stabilization surgery is the commonly employed intervention for treating individuals with instability. Following surgery, a substantial proportion of individuals experience acute post-operative pain, which is usually managed with opioid pain medications. Unfortunately, the extended use of opioid medications can have adverse effects that impair function and reduce military operational readiness, but there are currently few alternatives. However, battlefield acupuncture (BFA) is a minimally invasive therapy demonstrating promise as a non-pharmaceutical intervention for managing acute post-operative pain. METHODS: This is a parallel, two-arm, single-blind randomized clinical trial. The two independent variables are intervention (2 levels, standard physical therapy and standard physical therapy plus battlefield acupuncture) and time (5 levels, 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 1 week, and 4 weeks post shoulder stabilization surgery). The primary dependent variables are worst and average pain as measured on the visual analog scale. Secondary outcomes include medication usage, Profile of Mood States, and Global Rating of Change. DISCUSSION: The magnitude of the effect of BFA is uncertain; current studies report confidence intervals of between-group differences that include minimal clinically important differences between intervention and control groups. The results of this study may help determine if BFA is an effective adjunct to physical therapy in reducing pain and opioid usage in acute pain conditions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04094246. Registered on 16 September 2019.