By Mary Pezzella, PT, DPT If your hands ache after a long practice session, the cause might be higher up than you’d expect. The muscles that move your fingers actually live in your forearms. That’s why a sore wrist so often comes with an achy forearm, and why a “hand problem” isn’t always just in...
Spinal manipulation dates back to Hippocrates and ancient Egyptian medicine, but the explanation for why it helps has changed more recently than the treatment itself. Patients often describe it the same way: “my spine was out of place, and the manipulation put it back.” Research has disproven that theory. Imaging taken before and after a...
By: Mary Pezzella, PT, DPT Whether you play violin, drums, piano, guitar, trumpet, or sing, you are asking your body to perform a highly skilled physical task, often for hours at a time, under pressure, and with little room for error. The repetitive movements, sustained positions, and physical demands of playing can contribute to musician...
By Mary Pezzella, PT, DPT You finish a long rehearsal and your neck is tight, your shoulder is burning, and the space between your shoulder blades feels like a knot. Maybe it settles overnight. Then you pick up your instrument the next day and it’s right back. If that sounds familiar, you’re in good company....
Pain around or behind the kneecap that flares on stairs, squats, running, or long stretches of sitting is usually patellofemoral pain (PFP). It is common, with a 2018 meta-analysis in PLOS ONE putting annual prevalence in the general population at 22.7%, and it has a reputation for lingering. Current guidelines are clear about where treatment...
In our Boulder Physical Therapy and Lafayette Physical Therapy Clinics we are focused on identifying both the pain generator and the reasons why it is symptomatic. These may or may not occur in the same joint or structure. In many cases, the underlying reason we have pain may be driven from an adjacent body structure...
Knee arthritis remains one of the most common diagnoses in middle to older adults playing tennis and pickleball. Patients commonly experience joint stiffness, pain, and weakness leading to decreased participation in playing tennis or pickleball. Strength training and aerobic exercise remain the most powerful interventions for tennis and pickleball players. Stronger muscles help dissipate the...
Biomechanics in sports are essential to both performance and injury risk becoming more important as athletes begin to increase their training volume and reach higher levels of performance. Among runners poor biomechanics in the lower quarter have been associated with reduced running economy and in turn performance, as well as, overuse injuries such as patellofemoral...
Cutting movements utilized in soccer, football, basketball, and lacrosse are one of the most common mechanisms of non contact knee injuries. Athletes who cut with poor mechanics demonstrate larger hip and knee angles placing the ligaments of the knee, such as the ACL, at greater risk of injury. These movements at the knee are driven...
Knee arthritis is a common, costly condition affecting a large percentage of middle aged and older adults. Physical Therapy remains the gold standard of care for knee arthritis due to its’ ability to delay or prevent the need for a total knee replacement. One of the foundations of Physical Therapy care includes strength training for the...
