Clinical Commentary: Therapist supervised clinic-based therapy versus instruction in a home program following distal radius fracture: A systematic review

摘要

There is considerable controversy as to how to best treat patients with healing distal radius fractures (DRF). The authors of this study assert that 'as many as one in four patients following DRF will incur a complication that can impact their functional outcome.' Yet, many of the studies conducted examining outcomes within this patient population appear to exclude those with complications. Several investigators have examined outcomes (i.e. changes in motion, strength and function) among individuals recovering from DRF treated with a supervised therapy program as opposed to instruction in and independent performance of a home exercise program. The results of these studies have varied considerably; therefore, it is difficult for clinicians to arrive at best clinical practices to optimally treat this patient population.