Biomedical subjects

Rosemarie Cooper

Publications and source records attributed to Rosemarie Cooper.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Assessing the influence of wheelchair technology on perception of participation in spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate factors related to the wheelchair, impairment, and environment that affect perception of participation of persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) in activities performed in 3 settings: in the home, in the community, and during transportation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Research centers and a specialized assistive technology (AT) clinic in Pittsburgh (Pitt). Research centers and community-based rehabilitation technology suppliers in Saint Louis (SL). PARTICIPANTS: Seventy wheelchair users with SCI. INTERVENTIONS: Subjects from Pitt and SL completed a written survey of AT usage in daily activities. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Subjects were asked 5 questions within each setting (home, community, transportation) related to their perceived reason for functional limitations. RESULTS: The wheelchair was the most commonly cited factor limiting participation, followed by physical impairment and physical environment. Twenty-one percent of subjects with paraplegia reported pain as a limiting factor for their transportation use, significantly more (P=.047) than subjects with tetraplegia (3%). A trend (P=.099) was seen toward a higher percentage of subjects with tetraplegia (tetraplegia, 7%; paraplegia, 3%) reporting lack of equipment as a limiting factor for use of transportation. Differences were also seen across sites. CONCLUSIONS: The wheelchair was the most commonly cited limiting factor, followed by physical impairment and physical environment. The wheelchair is the most important mobility device used by persons with SCI and the one that users most associate with barriers.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2004

Impact of a pushrim-activated power-assisted wheelchair on the metabolic demands, stroke frequency, and range of motion among subjects with tetraplegia.

OBJECTIVES: To determine differences in metabolic demands, stroke frequency, and upper-extremity joint range of motion (ROM) during pushrim-activated power-assisted wheelchair (PAPAW) propulsion and traditional manual wheelchair propulsion among subjects with tetraplegia. DESIGN: Repeated measures. SETTING: A biomechanics laboratory within a Veterans Affairs medical center. PARTICIPANTS: Fifteen full-time manual wheelchair users who had sustained cervical-level spinal cord injuries. INTERVENTIONS: Participants propelled both their own manual wheelchairs and a PAPAW through 3 different resistances (slight, 10W; moderate, 12W; high, 14W) on a wheelchair dynamometer. Each propulsion trial was 3 minutes long. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary variables that were compared between the 2 wheelchairs were participants mean steady-state oxygen consumption, ventilation, heart rate, mean stroke frequency, and maximum upper-extremity joint ROM. RESULTS: When using the PAPAW, participants showed a significant ( P <.05) decrease in mean oxygen consumption and ventilation throughout all trials. Mean heart rate was significantly lower when using the PAPAW for the high resistance trial. Stroke frequency was significantly lower when using the PAPAW for the slight and moderate resistances. Overall joint ROM was significantly lower when using the PAPAW. CONCLUSIONS: For subjects with tetraplegia, PAPAWs reduce the energy demands, stroke frequency, and overall joint ROM when compared with traditional manual wheelchair propulsion.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Push for power.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Electric Power Supplies↗

PubMed2004

Preliminary assessment of a prototype advanced mobility device in the work environment of veterans with spinal cord injury.

The INDEPENDENCE 3000 IBOT Transporter (IBOT) is an electronically stabilizing device for people with disabilities. The purpose of this study was to collect qualitative data on the potential for the IBOT to improve employment satisfaction of veterans who use wheelchairs to work. This study was based upon observations by trained clinicians, and responses to a survey completed by four men with traumatic spinal cord injury, who worked in an office environment. The mean age of the subjects was 52 +/- 8.8 years. The subjects used the devices to hold eye-level discussions with colleagues, climb stairs, ascend steep ramps, and negotiate curbs. When subjects were asked to rate the ease of getting around in the IBOT compared to their personal wheelchairs, they responded with a mean of 6.7 +/- 1.8 on a 10-point visual analog scale. The response to rating the overall function of the IBOT within their working environment yielded a rating of 6.0 +/- 2.8. Half of the users felt that the IBOT would help them at work and all thought it should be made available to veterans who use wheelchairs. A larger study should be conducted to determine if the IBOT affects work performance and the ability to return to work.

Employment↗

PubMed2003

Tips and falls during electric-powered wheelchair driving: effects of seatbelt use, legrests, and driving speed.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the response of a test dummy while traversing common obstacles encountered by users of electric-powered wheelchairs (EPWs) to determine whether optimal wheelchair fit, use of seatbelts, and driving speed affect the frequency and severity of EPW tips and falls. DESIGN: Repeated-measures comparison study. SETTING: Constructed environment both in and around a Veterans Affairs medical center. PARTICIPANT: A 50th percentile Hybrid II anthropometric test dummy (ATD) was used to simulate a person driving an EPW. INTERVENTIONS: The ATD was driven in 4 different EPWs over commonly encountered obstacles at speeds of 1 and 2m/s, with and without the use of a seatbelt, and at varying legrest heights. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The response and motion of the ATD were observed and recorded as no fall, loss of control (the ATD falls forward or sideways but remains in the EPW), the ATD falls out of the EPW, or the EPW tips completely. RESULTS: A total of 97 adverse events out of 1700 trials were recorded: 88 were losses of control (instability) and 9 were ATD falls. No complete tips of any EPW occurred. Univariate statistical analysis indicated a significant relationship between the adverse events and the use of seatbelts, legrest condition, and test obstacles (P<.05). A mixed-model analysis confirmed the significant relationships between the adverse events and the use of seatbelts, legrest condition, and test obstacles (P<.05). However, the mixed model indicated that (1) there was no significant relationship between the adverse events and driving speed and (2) no one obstacle was designated to be the most problematic. CONCLUSION: Persons who use EPWs should use seatbelts and legrests while driving their EPWs, and clinicians should include common driving tasks when assessing the proper set-up of EPWs.

Acceleration↗

PubMed2003

Use of the Independence 3000 IBOT Transporter at home and in the community.

BACKGROUND: The INDEPENDENCE 3000 IBOT Transporter (IBOT) is an electronically stabilizing mobility device for people with disabilities. It operates in 4 functions: Standard, Balance (raised on 2 rear wheels), 4 Wheel (for inclines, curbs, and uneven terrain), and Remote (for loading into a vehicle). OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to observe the IBOT at use in the home and in the community. METHODS: Data were obtained via observations by trained clinicians, data recorded from a computerized data logger, and reports from each expert. PARTICIPANTS: Participants included 10 unimpaired nonwheelchair users (6 men, 4 women) and 4 expert wheelchair users (men with spinal cord injuries, T7-L1). The participants used the IBOT to perform a variety of activities, including holding eye-level discussions with colleagues and shopping by balancing on 2 wheels, going up and down steep ramps, traversing outdoor surfaces (eg, grass, dirt trails), and climbing curbs. OBSERVATIONS: The Balance and 4-Wheel functions were helpful and worked well. The IBOT required attention to control in the Standard function. The seat height was too high for most tables and desks, and the IBOT was challenging to use in the bathroom. CONCLUSION: The IBOT is a functional mobility device that expands the options of wheelchair users. It is most useful outdoors and where there is sufficient space to use its unique Balance function.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2003

Investigating neck pain in wheelchair users.

OBJECTIVE: Despite the fact that wheelchair users are exposed to risk factors for neck and upper back pain (NP), little is known about the impact and possible diagnoses associated with NP. The purpose of this study was to examine the significance of NP in wheelchair users and to determine if a portion of the NP may be myofascial in origin. DESIGN: Cross-sectional cohort study using questionnaires and physical exams to evaluate NP in a convenience sample of wheelchair users from the National Veteran's Wheelchair Games. Main outcome measures included reported NP, visual analog scale of neck complaints, Neck Disability Index, and physical examination findings of trigger points. RESULTS: Sixty-six percent of subjects reported NP since becoming a wheelchair user and, 60% reported pain during the past month. Neither age nor length of time in a wheelchair was significantly different between those subjects who did and those subjects who did not report pain. Of those respondents who reported NP, 60% visited the doctor about the pain and 40% limited their daily activities due to the pain. Trigger-point palpation reproduced pain in 54% of those respondents who experienced pain in the past month (n = 34). CONCLUSION: This study provides a first step in defining the prevalence and significance of NP among wheelchair users. Clinicians who work with this population need to ask subjects about symptoms and consider a myofascial origin for that pain when considering treatment.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Driving characteristics of electric-powered wheelchair users: how far, fast, and often do people drive?

OBJECTIVES: To determine the driving characteristics of electric-powered wheelchair users during unrestricted community activities and to compare the activity levels among an active group and a group of regular users. DESIGN: Multisite engineering evaluation of electric-powered wheelchair driving activity during unrestricted community mobility. SETTING: Data were collected in the communities of Pittsburgh, PA, and the National Veterans Wheelchair Games (NVWG) in San Antonio, TX. PARTICIPANTS: Seventeen people participated, all of whom used electric-powered wheelchairs as their primary means of mobility. INTERVENTION: Each subject was asked standarized questions about self and wheelchair use. Data logger and sensor installed on wheelchair. Data downloaded from logger. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Speed, distance traveled, and the time that each subject's personal wheelchair was being driven were recorded for 24hr/d over approximately 5 days for each subject by using a custom-built data logger. RESULTS: The NVWG group traveled faster than the Pittsburgh group, but this difference was only statistically significant on the first day. The NVWG group was more likely to travel longer than the Pittsburgh group with significant differences seen in day 4 (P = .03) and day 5 (P = .05). Total distance traveled during the 5-day period and average distance traveled per day were also significantly different between the groups (P = .02 for both 5-day distance and daily distance), with the NVWG group traveling longer (17,164 +/- 8708m) when compared with the Pittsburgh group (8335 +/- 7074m) over the 5-day period. Both distance traveled and speed increased during afternoon and evening hours. The maximum distance traveled by any subject for each hour across the 2 groups was used to create the theoretic maximum distance day, which resulted in 7970m of driving. CONCLUSION: Drivers of electric-powered wheelchairs are most active during the afternoon and evening hours. Over the 5-day period of this study, there was little variation in the speed or distance driven per day. The subjects participating in the NVWG were more active than their counterparts during a typical week at home. The maximum theoretic distance that a wheelchair user in our group would travel is less than 8km. The range of current electric-powered wheelchairs appears adequate, if not generous, for the subjects in our study.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Freestyle seating.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Arm↗