Focussing on the key technologies in developing robots for a wide range of medical rehabilitation activities - which will include robotics basics, modelling and control, biomechanics modelling, rehabilitation strategies, robot assistance, clinical setup/implementation as well as neural and muscular interfaces for rehabilitation robot control - this book is split into two parts; a review of the current state of the art, and recent advances in robotics for medical rehabilitation. Both parts will include five sections for the five key areas in rehabilitation robotics: (i) the upper limb; (ii) lower limb for gait rehabilitation (iii) hand, finger and wrist; (iv) ankle for strains and sprains; and (v) the use of EEG and EMG to create interfaces between the neurological and muscular functions of the patients and the rehabilitation robots. Each chapter provides a description of the design of the device, the control system used, and the implementation and testing to show how it fulfils the needs of that specific area of rehabilitation. The book will detail new devices, some of which have never been published before in any journal or conference.

If there's one thing author Paul Sybert knows well, it's the act of living life in the face of adversity. In "The Kindness of Strangers," Sybert shares his life story and shows how he has confronted his fears and troubles and placed his trust in Jesus Christ.

This memoir shares some of the most important moments in his life, as well as the tribulations that have tested him. "The Kindness of Strangers" recalls some of the most important events of Sybert's life-being baptized at age twelve, earning a bachelor's degree in engineering, experiencing divorce and the loss of love, struggling with an alcohol addiction, appreciating the gift of a spiritual mother, and surviving a stroke.

But most of all, Sybert shares how God has worked in his life. Through anecdotes and illustrations, he communicates the importance of maintaining a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. "The Kindness of Strangers" offers insight into the life of a man who faced his fear and persevered.

This book focuses on the key technologies in developing biomechatronic systems for medical rehabilitation purposes. It includes a detailed analysis of biosignal processing, biomechanics modelling, neural and muscular interfaces, artificial actuators, robot-assisted training, clinical setup/implementation and rehabilitation robot control. Encompassing highly multidisciplinary themes in the engineering and medical fields, it presents researchers' insights into the emerging technologies and developments that are being utilized in biomechatronics for medical purposes. Presenting a detailed analysis of five key areas in rehabilitation robotics: (i) biosignal processing; (ii) biomechanics modelling; (iii) neural and muscular interfaces; (iv) artificial actuators and devices; and (v) the use of neurological and muscular interfaces in rehabilitation robots control, the book describes the design of biomechatronic systems, the methods and control systems used and the implementation and testing in order to show how they fulfil the needs of that specific area of rehabilitation. Providing a comprehensive overview of the background of biomechatronics and details of new advances in the field, it is especially useful for researchers, academics and graduates new to the field of biomechatronics engineering, and is also of interest to researchers and clinicians in the medical field who are not engineers.

Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care:Biobehavioral Approaches for the Life Course Rhonda J. Moore, editor This book takes both a biobehavioral and a lifespan approach to understanding long-term and chronic pain, and intervening to optimize patients' functioning. Rich in clinical diversity, chapters explore emerging areas of interest (computer-based interventions, fibromyalgia, stress), ongoing concerns (cancer pain, low back pain), and special populations (pediatric, elderly, military). This coverage provides readers with a knowledge base in assessment, treatment, and management that is up to date, practice strengthening, and forward looking. Subject areas featured in the Handbook include: Patient-practitioner communication Assessment tools and strategies Common pain conditions across the lifespan Biobehavioral mechanisms of chronic pain Pharmaceutical, neurological, and rehabilitative interventions Psychosocial, complementary/alternative, narrative, and spiritual approaches Ethical issue and future directions With the rise of integrative perspective and the emphasis on overall quality of life rather than discrete symptoms, pain management is gaining importance across medical disciplines. Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care stands out as a one-stop reference for a range of professionals, including health practitioners specializing in pain management or palliative care, clinical and health psychologists, public health professionals, and clinicians and administrators in long-term care and hospice.

Medical treatment guidelines are written from a clinical perspective, to guide clinical care. The review criteria that will be included in this issue of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Clinics are evidence based and are developed by practicing physicians and advisors who work in physical medicine and rehabilitation. Health care providers are expected to be familiar with the guidelines and follow the recommendations. Good medical judgment is important in deciding how to use and interpret this information.

This volume, is developed from a collaborative study sponsored by the World Health Organization over a period of five years, the result of the combined effort of over 30 experts working in 19 different countries. The book presents a comprehensive survey of the development, policy, and procedures of methadone maintenance in countries with experience in this treatment. In addition to presenting a general overview of methadone's role in treating opioid addiction, the volume also focuses on specific questions of current interest, particularly the critical issue of methadone maintenance in the prevention of AIDS. Public health specialists and policymakers will find this book an invaluable source of information about what can be expected from methadone maintenance programs and why such programs have achieved some success in the rehabilitation of opiate users, while so many other attempts in this area have failed.

Following an introductory chapter, the contributors look at the impact of AIDS epidemiology on methadone policy. The role of methadone in addressing intravenous drug abuse and unsafe sex practices in drug dependent persons is explored in an attempt to assess the ability of methadone maintenance programs to stem the spread of AIDS. Subsequent chapters review the world literature on methadone in treating opioid dependency, explore national policies and practices regarding methadone maintenance, present an international survey of methadone's role, and analyze the present state of research on methadone. A bibliography and index complete the volume.

This groundbreaking annual review has provided nearly three decades of knowledge, insight, and research on topics critical to the field of nursing. The 33rd volume delivers the most current research on traumatic brain injury (TBI) with a focus on its implications for improving health and wellbeing. The book examines promising new interventions for individuals suffering from TBI with supporting research about their efficaciousness. Invited experts--highly respected nurse scientists working in a variety of TBI-related arenas--stress outcomes and symptom development post-TBI. The Review encompasses current military research on TBI along with animal models in TBI research. It addresses the relationship of sleep disorders to TBI-related PSTD; biomarkers related to recovery from TBI; genomics, transciptomics, and epigenomics; cerebral perfusion pressure and intracranial pressure in TBI; and an informatics system for TBI research. Also covered are TBI in pediatrics and in caregiver research. Additionally, the Review also provides a unique literature review of under-reported research. Key Topics Military Research on TBI Animal Models in TBI Research PSTD and Sleep Post-TBI Biomarkers Related to Recovery Post-TBI Genomics, Transcriptomics, and Epigenomics in TBI Research Common Data Elements and Federal Interagency Traumatic Brain Injury: Research Informatics System for TBI Research Cerebral Perfusion Pressure and Intracranial Pressure in TBI TBI in Pediatrics TBI in Caregiver Research

Sports Rehabilitation is a multi-disciplinary approach to treat injuries sustained through sports participation so the athlete can regain normal pain-free mobility. The primary goal is to return to pre-injury activities, whether the athlete is a professional, amateur or casual player. Articles to include ACL/Knee rehabilitation, Foot Intrinsics and Balance, Hamstring rehabilitation in runners, Rehabilitation of the throwing athlete, Concussion rehabilitation and many more!

This book presents current innovative, alternative and creative approaches that challenge traditional mechanisms in and across disciplines and industries targeting societal impact. A common thread throughout the book is human-centered, uni and multi-modal strategies across the range of human technologies, including sensing and stimuli; virtual and augmented worlds; games for serious applications; accessibility; digital-ethics and more. Focusing on engaging, meaningful, and motivating activities that at the same time offer systemic information on human condition, performance and progress, the book is of interest to anyone seeking to gain insights into the field, be they students, teachers, practicing professionals, consultants, or family representatives. By offering a wider perspective, it addresses the need for a core text that evokes and provokes, engages and demands and stimulates and satisfies.

This issue includes a range of topics in SCI from acute neuroprotection to chronic complications, focusing on some of the technological advances that have informed specific areas.

This issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America is devoted to "Difficult to Treat Pain Syndromes," and is edited by Adam L. Schreiber, DO of the Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University. Articles in this issue will include: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Diagnosis; Non-surgical Treatment of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome; Parsonage Turner Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Trochanteric Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Discogenic Spine Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Failed Back Surgery Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Myofascial Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatments; Opioid Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Spinal Cord Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; Cerebral Vascular Accident Hemishoulder Pain Syndrome Diagnosis and Treatment; and Cancer Pain Syndromes. "Each chapter follows a pattern of discussion through diagnosis in terms of up-to-date criteria." Reviewed by Paul Cameron, January 2015

This book examines the new knowledge that has been gained from the objective monitoring of habitual physical activity by means of pedometers and accelerometers. It reviews current advances in the technology of activity monitoring and details advantages of objective monitors relative to physical activity questionnaires. It points to continuing gaps in knowledge, and explores the potential for further advances in the design of objective monitoring devices. Epidemiologists have studied relationships between questionnaire assessments of habitual physical activity and various medical conditions for some seventy years. In general, they have observed positive associations between regular exercise and good health, but because of inherent limitations in the reliability and accuracy of physical activity questionnaires, optimal exercise recommendations for the prevention and treatment of disease have remained unclear. Inexpensive pedometers and accelerometers now offer the epidemiologist the potential to collect relatively precisely graded and objective information on the volume, intensity and patterns of effort that people are undertaking, to relate this data to past and future health experience, and to establish dose/response relationships between physical activity and the various components of health. Such information is important both in assessing the causal nature of the observed associations and in establishing evidence-based recommendations concerning the minimal levels of daily physical activity needed to maintain good health.

This issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America is devoted to "Amputee Rehabilitation." Editor Robert Meier, III, MD is the Medical Director of the Amputee Services of America and has assembled the top experts to review this important topic. Articles in this issue include: Principles of Contemporary Amputee Rehabilitation; Etiology and Demographics of Amputation; Surgical Techniques for Ideal Outcomes; Pre-prosthetic Care; Prosthetic Choices for Leg and Arm Amputees; Devising the Prosthetic Prescription and Typical Examples; Prosthetic Training; Complications Following an Amputation; Outcomes Measurement; Gait Evaluation for the Leg Amputee; Innovative Techniques and Future Options; Emotional Adaptation to Limb Loss; Pain Management for the Amputee; and Amputation Classification and Functional Outcomes.

Written to satisfy a wide audience, from basic scientist to clinical researcher, this volume explores such varied concepts as: the influence of CBF in the pathotrajectory of TBI, modeling TBI as a means to understand underlying pathological states associated with brain injury victims, disrupted vasculature following head trauma and advanced imaging techniques, vasoreactive substances underlying disrupted blood flow, the role of age and sex on injury outcome, and the latest pre-clinical rationale for focusing on CBF and strategies to improve blood flow as a means to improve outcome in patients suffering the effects of TBI.

This issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics devoted to Life Care Planning is Guest Edited by Michel Lacerte, MD, Richard Paul Bonfiglio, MD, and Cloie B. Johnson, M.Ed., ABVE, CCM. This issue will focus on the long-term care of a patient's rehabilitation, typically after a major life event. Articles in this issue will focus on the life care planning of patients with spinal cord injury, acquired brain injury, spinal pain, Cerebral Palsy, neuropathic pain, and life care planning for amputees. Other articles in this issue include: The Life Care Planning Process; The Physiatrist's Role in Life Care Planning; Life Expectancy Determination; and Vocational Rehabilitation and Work Life Expectancy.

"This is a very substantive book that encompasses the various aspects of advance care planning, both prior to and after a diagnosis of a life-limiting disease. The realistic case studies help readers understand the complexities of decision-making by the individual and the family."--Doody's Medical Reviews

While advance directives hold a great deal of promise for ensuring self-determination and quality of life near its end, the majority of Americans face life-threatening illness without having completed effective advance care planning.. This volume recounts the history of advance directives, chronicling the evolution of an approach that initially focused on completing forms, to one that now emphasizes more comprehensive strategies for facilitating conversations about end-of-life care and planning for dying and death. It provides helpful strategies for initiating and guiding discussions among providers, patients, and their loved ones, easing the burdens of uncertainty, and improving the efficacy of surrogate decision making near the end of life.

Scholars and practitioners from a variety of disciplines provide a well-rounded view of the history and challenges of advance directives. Authors include palliative care physicians, nurses, social workers, grief counselors, educators, lawyers, psychologists, sociologists, and medical ethicists. The book shares successful strategies on how effective advance care planning can provide smoother transitions at the end of life and ensure better quality of living before death. It incorporates effective multidisciplinary, relationship-based models of advance care planning along with multidisciplinary perspectives to help caregiving professionals initiate conversations and disseminate relevant information to patients and their loved ones and advocates. Case studies illustrate the importance of, challenges with, and prospects for advance directives and advance care planning. The book addresses common barriers to advance care planning and offers ways to overcome them, as well as detailing public health, legal, and comprehensive community planning approaches to change how our current American society deals with dying, death, and end-of-life care. Key Features:

Introduces a multidisciplinary, pragmatic approach to advance care planning Addresses strategies to reform advance care planning Presents case studies illustrating the importance, benefits, and challenges of advance directives Features successful initiatives in advance care planning and new directions that shift community practice related to dying, death, and end-of-life care. Includes the contributions of physicians, grief counselors, medical ethicists, social workers, psychologists, medical ethicists, lawyers, nurses, educators, and others

This book explores comorbidity in patients with rheumatic diseases and details both care and treatment options in standard clinical practice. Patients with rheumatic diseases are clinically complex, and the interplay of their disease activity with associated conditions may lead to increased morbidity and mortality. Recently there have been major advances in the management of rheumatic diseases, however, without addressing the potential comorbid conditions, including cardiovascular disease; pulmonary disease; and depression; outcomes remain poor. With its 19 chapters, covering the management of major rheumatic diseases (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus , and osteoarthritis), potential comorbidities and treatment recommendations, as well as possible interactions between conditions; this book addresses the gap between textbook medicine and day to day patients' care. Authors also discuss the new hot issue of the comorbidity index, comparing the standard tools to the recently developed indices and how they can assist the rheumatologists in determining disease burden, prognosis, and comorbidity probability. This book is an ideal clinical guide and reference that enables rheumatologists, internal medicine physicians, and residents to address the full clinical expression of these rheumatic diseases with views towards prevention or early management of comorbid conditions.

This issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics, Guest Edited by Dr. Francois Bethoux, is devoted to the topic of Ambulation in Adults with Central Neurologic Disorders. Ambulation, or the restoration thereof, is an extremely important part of recovery from any number of ailments or surgeries, from stroke to hip replacements. This issue will focus on the restoration of ambulation in adults suffering from central neurologic disorders, which is a major area for physiatrists. It will include articles on MS, stroke, Parkinson's disease, and spinal cord injuries. It will also offer information on how to measure and analyze ambulation in recovery, and medical treatments to improve ambulation.

Neuromuscular disease is a broad term that encompasses many diseases and ailments that either directly or indirectly impair the function of the body's muscle system, via the nerves. This issue of PMR will provide an overview of current treatments and therapies for a variety of diseases. The GEs have gone through every issue published since 1998, and these 23 chapters will be meant to fill the numerous gaps in PMR's coverage of the field over the past decade. The issue will include chapters on different treatment techniques, such as exercises, stretches, and nutrition. It will also provide chapters focusing on specific areas of the body, specific conditions, and an update on mobility technology for those with NMDs.

This book provides a comprehensive review of recent developments in the field of motor neuroprosthetics and brain-machine interfaces. Chapters in this book are provided by leading experts in the field and include topics such as the design and control of multidimensional prosthetics and exoskeletons, deep brain stimulation, functional electrical stimulation, deep learning for brain machine interfaces, biofeedback, and cognitive intent for adaptation of motor prostheses. This book is a great resource for undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, engineers from related disciplines, entrepreneurs, and anyone interested in the latest progress in the field of motor neuroprostheses.

Neuromuscular disease is a broad term that encompasses many diseases and ailments that either directly or indirectly impair the function of the body's muscle system, via the nerves. This issue of PMR will provide an overview of current treatments and therapies for a variety of diseases. The GEs have gone through every issue published since 1998, and these 23 chapters will be meant to fill the numerous gaps in PMR's coverage of the field over the past decade. The issue will include chapters on different treatment techniques, such as exercises, stretches, and nutrition. It will also provide chapters focusing on specific areas of the body, specific conditions, and an update on mobility technology for those with NMDs.

Issue will cover: sinle muscle fiber electrophysiology, skinned muscle fibers, magnetic resonance imaging in muscular dystrophy, ultrasound of nerve and muscle, microgenomics of the motor neuron system, and electrodiagnostic studies in animal models.