Elastic head support for persons with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

• Published in: Journal of rehabilitation research and development Vol. 51; no. 2; pp. 297 - 303
• Main Authors: Hansen, Andrew, Bedore, Beau, Nickel, Eric, Hanowski, Kristin, Tangen, Sonya, Goldish, Gary
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Department of Veterans Affairs 01-01-2014; Superintendent of Documents
• Subjects: Activities of daily living; Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - complications; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - physiopathology; Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - rehabilitation; Automobile safety; Baseball; Care and treatment; Complications and side effects; Consent; Elasticity; Equipment Design; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Head Movements - physiology; Humans; Male; Muscle Weakness - etiology; Muscle Weakness - physiopathology; Muscle Weakness - rehabilitation; Orthotic Devices; Patient outcomes; Physical Therapy Modalities - instrumentation; Posture - physiology; R&D; Research & development; Review boards; Risk factors; Studies; Treatment Outcome; Veterans; United States; elastic head support; head; cervical orthosis; rehabilitation; range of motion; orthotic devices; neck; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; braces; neck muscle weakness
• ISSN: 0748-7711; 1938-1352
• DOI: 10.1682/JRRD.2013.03.0072

This article describes an inexpensive elastic head support for persons with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and neck muscle weakness and also presents a case series to examine its effectiveness. The device offers support to the head while the user is seated, standing, and walking, providing support for persons in various stages of ALS. The head support system was tested in seven male patients with ALS. Before and after the 2 wk trial, the subjects answered questions related to their communication efficacy, difficulty swallowing, level of neck discomfort, number of hours being upright before neck discomfort, comfort in social settings, and rating of perceived dyspnea. Subjects also answered specific questions related to the elastic head support after the 2 wk trial. The results suggested that the elastic head support is useful for some, but not all, patients.