Lower extremity stiffness (“leg stiffness”) describes the resistance the joints and muscles in your lower body will have to movement when your foot contacts the ground during running. Think of your leg as a spring; the more tightly coiled spring will be stiffer, the more loosely coiled will be more deformable. A stiffer leg is...
Physical Therapy interventions including manual therapy and exercise remain the primary intervention for patients with knee arthritis. These treatments have been shown to delay or prevent the need for costly, more invasive treatments including total knee replacement. Prescribed Physical Therapy exercises are designed to reduce pain, improve mobility, and increase a patient’s leg strength. Stronger...
Paracetamol, or acetaminophen, was initially introduced in the late 1800s and has become the most commonly prescribed medication for fever and pain in the United States. It is one class of medications recommended by the American College of Rheumatology for patients with arthritis who have not responded favorably to weight loss and Physical Therapy. Although...
Knee osteoarthritis is a common and increasing diagnosis that is contributing to an rapid rise in total knee arthroplasty surgery in the United States. Knee Osteoarthritis leads to disability in greater than 10% of those over 55 years, however manual therapy and exercise has shown to be twice as successful compared to a home exercise...
The human body is an amazing system of interconnected tissues and organ systems designed to handle and thrive against the forces of life, work, and sport. Our body tissues such as bone, muscle, and tendons are extremely resilient to repetitive forces, but can be modified through progressive, consistent loading. Examples include improvements in bone density,...
Heart disease remains the number one killer of both women and men in our country. Although the causes of heart disease are multifactorial in nature a significant percentage of known risk factors are modifiable. Abstaining from smoking, weight loss, nutrition, and exercise remain some of the most powerful ways to reduce your individual risk for...
Knee arthritis is a common condition among older adults and remains one of the greatest causes of disability in our country. Consistent with many musculoskeletal conditions there remains a disconnect between imaging findings and a patient’s clinical presentation. Studies have shown many patients without knee pain can have signs of arthritis on their x rays....
In the achilles tendinopathy (artist formally known as tendonitis) research two main themes have emerged. First, there is little to no evidence to support the use of injections of any kind into an injured tendon. Authors have advocated against steroid injections due to the risk of tendon rupture outweighing any potential benefits. Studies have also...
Mobility exercises designed to improve range of motion within an affected joint or tissue are a valuable part of any rehabilitation program. Previously clinicians prescribed various bouts (3 x 30 seconds) of static stretching in an attempt to lengthen short muscles. Current research has shown these prescriptions are ineffective at changing muscle length and instead...
With the hypervigilance in abstaining from opioid prescriptions due to the opioid crisis, there has been an effort in determining alternate ways of providing analgesic effects for those in chronic pain. One of the most consistent modalities to help benefit with treatment is exercise. There has been many studies exploring the analgesic effect of exercise...