The primary function of the Rehabilitation Medicine Department (RMD) is to diagnose and treat patients who have a dysfunction in locomotion, activities of daily living, occupational or avocational roles, communication, deglutition or chronic pain. The major goal of the department is to help patients achieve maximal function so that they may resume optimal performance in their daily living activities. The screening protocol provides clinicians in the RMD a vehicle for developing and piloting new tests, techniques, technology, or equipment for evaluation and treatment of patients and or subjects. The rehabilitation medicine screening protocol was used to pilot the following projects: 1.economics of a manual unilateral eight-muscle subset test compared with 26 muscle test in myositis; 2.feasibility of using Tinnetti assessment in patients with ataxia;3. study of ULDA to determine feasibility in patients with upper limb impairment; 4.assessment of normal variance of upper extremity girth in pre-menopausal women; 5.assessment of normal variance in upper extremity girth in post-menopausal women; 6.evaluation of exercise induced morphological changes in biceps brachii muscle with digital ultrasound imaging.
