An overview of rehabilitation approaches for focal hand dystonia in musicians: A scoping review

Abstract

Objective To provide a comprehensive overview of rehabilitation treatment strategies for focal hand dystonia (FHD) in musicians, examining their evolution and effectiveness. Data Sources A systematic search of five databases, PubMed, PEDro, Cochrane Library, Trip, and Google Scholar, to identify relevant articles on FHD rehabilitation. The last search was performed on 20 December 2023. Methods Inclusion criteria were applied to 190 initially identified articles, resulting in 17 articles for review. Exclusions were made for duplicates, irrelevant titles, abstracts, and non-rehabilitation interventions. Results Ten different rehabilitation approaches were identified over 20 years. While no definitive intervention protocol exists, a multimodal approach is commonly recommended. Conclusions This scoping review underscores the diversity of rehabilitation strategies for FHD. It suggests the potential of multimodal approaches, emphasizing the need for further large-scale clinical efficacy studies.