Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis or lateral elbow tendinopathy) is a self-limiting condition in most patients. Surgery is often offered to patients who fail to improve with conservative treatment. However, there is no evidence to support the superiority of surgery over continued nonoperative care or no [...]
Most studies investigating the prognosis of low back pain (LBP) enrol people presenting for care, rather than all people who have an episode of LBP. We aimed to describe the prognosis of an acute episode of LBP in a community inception cohort.
Many administrative health data-based studies define patient cohorts using procedure and diagnosis codes. The impact these criteria have on a study’s final cohort is not always transparent to co-investigators or other audiences if access to the research data is restricted. We developed a SAS and [...]
The evidence base for audit and feedback is incomplete and slow moving: agencies that routinely use feedback to improve care have limited evidence on the best designs and delivery of their feedback programs. Hence, the Department collaborated with researchers to conduct a randomized trial of their [...]
What are the effects of diagnostic labels and advice, and interactions between labels and advice, on perceived need for shoulder surgery for rotator cuff disease?
Given the cost differential between surgical and non-surgical management of distal radius fractures, we aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of surgical compared with non-surgical treatment of distal radius fractures in a cohort of older patients.
Isolated Weber B, AO (Association for the Study of Internal Fixation) type 44B ankle fractures with no fracture to the medial side are the most common type of ankle fracture and may be treated with internal fixation or without surgery. This study aimed to determine [...]
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and has been estimated to affect over 2.2 million Australians. While mild to moderate forms of the condition can be managed via non-surgical means (e.g. with guideline-recommended education, exercise, weight management and pharmacological treatments), more severe [...]
Health care has significant environmental impact. We performed a scoping review to map what is known about the environmental impact of health care for musculoskeletal conditions.
An online randomised experiment found that the labels lumbar sprain, non-specific low back pain (LBP), and episode of back pain reduced perceived need for imaging, surgery and second opinions compared to disc bulge, degeneration, and arthritis among 1447 participants with and without LBP. They also reduced perceived seriousness of LBP and increased recovery expectations.