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Richard Biggs, senior associate at Irwin Mitchell, takes a closer look at the practical benefits and cost issues related to osseointegration.

I have considered for several years as to how to plead a schedule of loss on an amputation case where a Claimant may choose to undergo osseointegration in the future. Osseointegration is described as follows:- (source London International Patient Services):“OsseoIntegration is an operative procedure used to eliminate the need for a conventional socket prosthesis”. Put simply, during osseointegration an implant is attached directly to a patient’s bone and left to protrude through the skin. It offers a rapid connection between the prosthetic limb and the stump and also provides an element of stability for the patient’s long term prosthetic use. In my experience of discussing the issues with patients who have undergone osseointegration in the past they all report that it is a lifechanging experience.

Episode six of the Curious Case Manager features Fifth Sense, a charity for people affected by smell and taste disorders.

In this episode Vicki Gilman talks to Duncan Boak, founder of Fifth Sense and Nina Hill, director of development and operations. They discuss Duncan’s own experience of loss of smell after he suffered from a traumatic brain injury, and how this led him to establish the charity. Duncan and Nina explain the history and development of the charity and explain how they support individuals with smell and taste disorders through providing information, advice and access to a network of specialist clinicians.

A study has found that 68% of people believe they should ‘reach out’ to carers more often – with 60% of respondents only asking carers how they are ‘now and again’, ‘rarely’ or ‘almost never’; leaving carers at risk of feeling forgotten.

Furthermore, 72% of respondents worried that carers struggled with ‘loneliness’ thanks to the full-on nature of care leaving them little time for socialising. Throughout the pandemic, caregivers have been at the forefront of the fight, looking after the most vulnerable in society and putting their own lives on the line to do so. In light of this, a campaign called #ReachOutAndHelpOut has been launched to encourage support for carers as they continue to deliver essential care to those in need – amidst fears that carers’ wellbeing is often overlooked.

Research on a genetic heart disease has uncovered a new and unexpected mechanism for heart failure. This landmark discovery found a correlation between the clumping of RNA-binding proteins ― long linked to neurodegenerative disease ― and the aggregates of protein found in the heart tissue of patients with RBM20 dilated cardiomyopathy.

Dilated cardiomyopathy is a disease of the heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body. A decade ago, Timothy Olson, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist at Mayo Clinic, traced the disease to a genetic mutation in a gene called RBM20. Unlike most heart disease, this form of cardiomyopathy can affect patients as early as young adulthood, and they are at particularly high risk for sudden cardiac death.

Detailed results from a prespecified exploratory analysis of the positive THALES Phase III trial showed Brilinta (ticagrelor) 90mg, used twice daily and taken with daily aspirin for 30 days, reduced the rate of the composite of disabling stroke or death by 17% compared to aspirin alone; in patients who had an acute ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA).

The rate of the composite of non-disabling stroke or death at 30 days was 1.3% in the aspirin plus ticagrelor group and 1.6% in the aspirin only group (HR 0.79 [95% CI 0.57, 1.08], p=0.140).

Case managers and service providers across the UK have embraced new ways of working during the COVID-19 pandemic which could become commonplace going forward, but concerns still persist about the lasting effects practically and financially, a new report has found.

Though the adoption of technology and remote means of client engagement, rehabilitation has continued to be provided in ways that will most likely become part of the ‘new normal’.

The Coronavirus - Impact on Rehabilitation report also highlights how by using ‘telerehab’, clients can feel more connected to their service providers, as more time is freed up for communication by taking out travelling time.

New clinical research has established that people with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) experienced significant improvement in cognitive function when consuming a specialised ketogenic drink (BrainXpert Energy Complex) twice a day for six months.

Affecting 15-20% of people aged 65+, MCI is a decline in cognitive functioning considered a transitional stage between normal ageing and dementia. In part, MCI develops when a person’s brain has less glucose available as a source of energy1, resulting in symptoms including memory loss, forgetfulness, and a decline in decision-making ability and judgment.

A project has been launched to introduce smart assistant devices into residential facilities for brain injury patients to enhance their wellbeing and increase their communication with the outside world both during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

The Disabilities Trust is pioneering the ConnectAbility project, which makes use of technologies and digital means to help increase independence and widen opportunities for social interaction among patients.

Through raising money to buy smart assistant devices, such as the Amazon Alexa, the Trust believes this could help people to live independently and bridge the ‘digital literacy’ gap which have previously prevented many people, particularly those with cognitive impairments, from benefitting from technology.

The incidence of dementia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is lower in patients receiving biologic or targeted synthetic disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) than in patients who receive conventional synthetic DMARDs, according to a new study. The study was presented at the virtual annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.

"Being on a biologic or targeted synthetic DMARD actually decreased your risk of incidence of dementia by 17% compared to patients who were on a conventional synthetic DMARD only," said lead study author Sebastian Sattui, a rheumatology fellow at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City. The study was done in collaboration with investigators from Weill Cornell Medicine and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Researchers at the University of East Anglia and Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) are launching a new project to improve the lives of dementia carers in the UK.

They will work with carers and healthcare workers to co-develop and test a new ‘Carecoach’ support package – backed by £2 million in funding from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The aim of the blended care initiative is to help dementia carers stay emotionally and physically well – which is crucial for both the carer and the person they support and care for.