Background: Motor imagery (MI) has become an increasingly popular rehabilitation tool for individuals with motor impairments. However, it has been proposed that individuals with Parkinson’s Disease (PKD) may not benefit from MI due to impairments in motor learning. Objective: This case series study investigated the effects of a 4-week MI training protocol on MI ability in three male individuals with

Introduction: Following acquired brain injury, the goal of return to work is common. While return to work is supported through different rehabilitation models and services, access to vocational rehabilitation varies within and between countries, and global rates of employment post-injury remain low. The literature identifies outcomes from vocational programs and experiences with return to work, yet

Background: Acquired brain injury (ABI) is accompanied by impairments in social, emotional, cognitive and behavioural skills and highly prevalent in the population. Social and emotional skills are crucial for moral cognition, but the extent to which moral cognition contributes to social competence deficits in people with ABI is largely unclear. Method: To provide more insight on this topic, we conducted

Background: Wearable cameras have been shown to improve memory in people with hippocampal amnesia and Alzheimer's disease. It is not known whether this benefit extends to people with amnesia of complex or uncertain origin. Method: This case study examined the effect of wearable camera use on memory and occupational performance in a patient with memory loss and complex mental health problems following

Background and Objectives: This systematic review aimed to identify and appraise the evidence for online peer-support interventions for caregivers of stroke survivors (with and without aphasia), and people with dementia, traumatic brain injury (TBI), Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. Research Design and Methods: Systematic review conducted in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for

Background and Objective: Post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) is an early significant stage of recovery from traumatic brain injury (TBI). Current prospective PTA scales do not assess the full range of PTA symptomatology. This study conducted a novel integrated assessment of cognition and behaviour during PTA. Method: Twenty-four moderate-to-severe TBI participants in PTA and 23 TBI controls emerged from

Purpose: Traumatic brain injury is recognised as a significant and pervasive health issue among offender populations. Despite this, no qualitative research exists exploring the experiences and perceptions of offenders with TBI in prison. Methods: Qualitative interviews were conducted with male and female offenders housed in a UK prison. Interviews examined what participants felt led them to offend

Background: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is routinely used during the early assessment of people after stroke to indicate cognitive effects and inform clinical decision-making. Aim: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between cognition in the first week post-stroke and personal and instrumental activities of daily skills at 1 month and 3 months post-stroke. Method:

Background: The clinical profile of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults admitted to hospital with neurological injury is not well documented. Understanding these profiles may enable health professionals to provide more culturally responsive health care for this patient group. This study aimed to report the clinical profile of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults admitted to a regional

Background/Objectives: Medication management is challenging for persons with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and their caregivers. Electronic medication management devices (eMMDs) are specifically designed to support this task. However, theory-driven interventions for eMMD training with this population are rarely described. This study aimed to develop and assess the appropriateness of an intervention protocol

The purpose of this review was to explore how vocal affect recognition deficits impact the psychosocial functioning of people with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). A systematic review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines was conducted, whereby six databases were searched, with additional hand searching of key journals also

Objective: Driving and stopping driving present challenging issues for older people living with memory problems and the family members supporting them. Changes to driving status impact the individual stopping driving and their family members. CarFreeMe is an existing, effective driving cessation program for older people that may be applicable to older people living with dementia. The purpose of this

Objectives: The Tailored Activity Program (TAP) is an evidence-based occupational therapist-led intervention for people living with dementia and their care partners at home, developed in the USA. This study sought to understand its acceptability to people living with dementia, their care partners, and health professionals, and factors that might influence willingness to participate prior to its implementation

Objectives: To satisfy requirements for continuing professional education, workforce demand for access to large-scale continuous professional education and micro-credential-style online courses is increasing. This study examined the Knowledge Translation (KT) outcomes for a short (2 h) online course about support at night for people living with dementia (Bedtime to Breakfast), delivered at a national

Douglas & Tate Prize for Best Research Article in Brain Impairment 2019 Paula Robinson Robinson, P.L., Russell, A., & Dysch, L. (2019). Third wave therapies for long term neurological conditions: A systematic review to evaluate the status and quality of the evidence. Brain Impairment, 20 (1), 58–80. doi: 10.1017/BrImp.2019.2 ABSTRACTS - ASSBI CONFERENCE 2020* *Conference cancelled due to pandemic –

Objective: Infantile hemiplegia due to brain injury is associated with poor attention span, which critically affects the learning and acquisition of new skills, especially among children with left-sided infantile hemiplegia (LSIH). This study aimed to improve the selective visual attention (SVA) of children with LSIH through transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Methods: A total of 15 children

Objective: To review the effects of whole body vibration for patients with Parkinson’s disease. Design: Randomized clinical trials comparing whole body vibration with no vibration or conventional physical therapy for patients with Parkinson’s disease were searched up to July 31, 2019. Results: Seven studies with 196 patients were included for quantitative analysis. No significant difference was found

Purpose: The intention of this paper is to develop the personal concept of appropriate access. We report on the service access experiences and opportunities of adults with an acquired brain injury after leaving inpatient rehabilitation. The benefits of appropriate access underpin standards in early and long-term recovery, though users’ access needs are highly personal. Methods: The study used a qualitative

Objective: The aim of this qualitative study was to understand processes involved in the maintenance and development of friendships after a person sustains a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Method: Four people with severe TBI from rural settings in Australia identified one-to-two friends to be interviewed. A total of nine friends participated in a semi-structured interview. Interviews were transcribed

Objective: The Cognition Battery of the National Institute of Health (NIH) Toolbox for Assessment of Neurological and Behavioural Function is a computerised neuropsychological battery recommended for clinical practice, neurological research and clinical trials. We investigated the utility of the NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery (NIHTB-CB) for people with concussion.Methods: In this small qualitative study

Background: Parental acquired communication disability has long-lasting impacts on children, including increased child stress and behavioural problems. However, speech-language pathologists’ (SLPs) current practice in providing information, education and counselling support to these children is unknown. Therefore, we explored SLPs’ perceived needs, current practices and barriers and facilitators to

Background: The uptake of smartphones as external compensatory memory aids following an acquired brain injury (ABI) in rehabilitation settings is low. Potential reasons for this include professionals not having evidence-based guidelines regarding the best methods to train smartphone use and prospective users not being familiar with technology and/or having memory and learning difficulties. This paper

Introduction: Providing evidence-based services in areas with emerging or low-level evidence is a challenge for many clinicians. The aim of the current study was to apply a newly designed novel methodology to develop and describe a new intervention for cognitive-communication reading comprehension deficits in early acquired brain injury rehabilitation.Methods: An emergent multi-phase mixed methods

Background and objectives: People with acquired brain injury (ABI) have traditionally experienced low employment rates, compared with the national average and others with disability in Australia. To positively impact mainstream economic participation following ABI, a co-design approach was used to investigate open employment pathways available and consider necessary pathway features to enable employment

Background: Craniosynostosis is defined as a premature fusion of one or more cranial sutures. Several studies have revealed cognitive deficits in some children who had undergone surgery to treat craniosynostosis. However, no general distinction has been drawn in the cognitive abilities between the various types of craniosynostosis. The purpose of the present study was to analyze if there is a difference

Objectives: Individuals with acquired brain injury (ABI) may present with challenging behaviours (CB) that place themselves and others at risk of harm and impact their community integration. It is crucial for community ABI therapists to successfully train in and implement behaviour interventions. The current study aimed to investigate community ABI therapists’ experiences of using, training in and

Objective: To synthesise the current best evidence on both pharmacological and non-pharmacological behaviour management interventions for adult patients in the acute hospital setting with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or post-traumatic amnesia (PTA). Data Sources: A comprehensive search of 10 electronic databases was completed. Study Selection: Systematic reviews (SRs) published in English before September

Background: Patients with severe stroke frequently present with substantial impairments but are often not prioritised for post-discharge rehabilitation. There is a need to determine where these patients are discharged to in order to facilitate appropriate allocation of post-discharge pathway resources. Aim: The present study aimed to describe the discharge pathways of patients with severe stroke and

Aims: Implementation of novel interventions occurs within broad organisational contexts, which contain many relationships and moving parts. Efforts need to be made to understand these relationships as they are an important predictor of successful implementation. This study examines the relationships between health professionals involved in the implementation of an evidence-based community program for

Aim: To identify management practices of Australian speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in the treatment of non-progressive dysarthria using a subsystem approach, and to explore SLPs’ consideration and implementation of the theoretical underpinnings of non-progressive dysarthria management.Method: A 39-item online survey was distributed to Australian SLPs, with 80 responses suitable for data analysis

Background: The interdependence between patient and caregivers’ health, which is when the patients’ and informal caregivers’ emotion, cognition and/or behavior affects that of the other person is well documented among dyads experiencing cancer and heart disease, but scant research has assessed interdependence among those with brain injuries or dementia and Latina/o populations. This study aimed to

Rationale: Evidence-based reablement programs for people with dementia and their caregivers are not routinely implemented in practice. These programs have been shown to be effective in delaying functional decline and improving caregiver wellbeing. Yet, little is known about the experiences of those participating in such programs. Aim: To describe experiences and outcomes of participating in a dementia

Background: Emerging data suggest that recovery from mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) takes longer than previously thought. This paper examines trajectories for cognitive recovery up to 48 months post-mTBI, presenting these visually using a Sankey diagram and growth curve analysis. Methods: This sample (n = 301) represents adults (≥16 years) from a population-based Brain Injury Outcomes in the New

Objective: Housing for people with acquired brain injury (ABI) or spinal cord injury (SCI) remains a significant issue in Australia and internationally. This review examined the current research evidence regarding the efficacy of housing alternatives for adults with ABI or SCI in relation to four principal outcomes of interest: the person’s (1) community integration/participation, (2) independence

Item response theory has its origins in educational measurement and is now commonly applied in health-related measurement of latent traits, such as function and symptoms. This application is due in large part to gains in the precision of measurement attributable to item response theory and corresponding decreases in response burden, study costs, and study duration. The purpose of this paper is twofold:

Recognition of facial affect has been studied extensively in adults with and without traumatic brain injury (TBI), mostly by asking examinees to match basic emotion words to isolated faces. This method may not capture affect labelling in everyday life when faces are in context and choices are open-ended. To examine effects of context and response format, we asked 148 undergraduate students to label

Objective: Individuals with acquired brain injury (ABI) may experience persistent and distressing challenging behaviours (CB), and therefore, effective delivery of behaviour interventions is crucial. This study aimed to investigate community ABI therapists’ experiences of using, training in and implementing behaviour interventions with a focus on Positive Behaviour Support (PBS).Methods: A sample of

Objective: The impact of traumatic brain injury (TBI) extends beyond the person who was injured. Family caregivers of adults with moderate to severe TBI frequently report increased burden, stress and depression. Few studies have examined the well-being of family members in the mild TBI population despite the latter representing up to 95% of all TBIs.Methods: Five areas of well-being were examined in

Objective: Cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis (MS) has a complex relationship with disease progression and neurodegeneration. The aim of this study was to shed light on the importance of early detection of cognitive impairment in MS patients.Methods: The study comprised two groups of definite MS patients, relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis

Clinical practice offers the opportunity for the clinician to be a scientist-practitioner in the workplace. This, in turn, facilitates building practice-based evidence. But this can only occur if the effects of the interventions are objectively and systematically evaluated. To this end, single-case methodology is a valuable tool to implement an intervention in a scientifically rigorous manner and gather

Adults with a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI) often show deficits in executive function (EF), including the ability to inhibit, switch, and attend to task relevant information. Although performances differences between bilinguals and monolinguals have been observed in EF tasks, there is little research on the effect of TBI on EF in bilinguals. In this study, an ecologically valid standardized

Background: People with cerebral palsy (CP) are less physically active than the general population and, consequently, are at increased risk of preventable disease. Evidence indicates that low-moderate doses of physical activity can reduce disease risk and improve fitness and function in people with CP. Para athletes with CP typically engage in ‘performance-focused’ sports training, which is undertaken

Best practice management for medically cleared concussion is to commence a graded return to activity, as tolerated, and within 24–48 h of the injury. Patients may encounter this or other advice if they search the Internet, or when they are discharged from care. It is not yet known how patients would interpret this advice, particularly for specific activities. This study compared the effect of two forms

The majority of studies examining botulinum toxin A (BTX-A) in the management of upper limb muscle overactivity and pain focus on the distal arm and hand. Research has begun to look at BTX-A efficacy in more proximal upper limb muscles, with literature showing equivocal findings. This scoping review identified 15 studies meeting inclusion criteria whose data were examined against three outcome variables:

Mood disturbance is frequent after traumatic brain injury (TBI), often assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Research supports a three-factor HADS structure (anxiety, depression, and psychomotor), although this has not been used to investigate demographic variables and mood outcome post-TBI. This study examined severity of TBI, demographic variables [age, gender, estimated

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is common among children. However, their caregivers’ knowledge and understanding of symptoms may influence how the injury is managed.

of this study was to examine the Twitter experiences and networks of six adults with cognitive-communication disability after a traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Background: A previous clinical trial of training communication partners of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI) demonstrated positive outcomes [Togher, Power, McDonald, Tate, & Rietdijk (2009). Brain Impairment, 10(2), 188-204]. Adapting communication partner training for delivery via telehealth could improve access to this intervention.