Almost 70% of long-haul truck drivers are classified as obese (BMI of 30 or higher)
17% morbidly obese (BMI of 40 or higher) ₁ (Source: CDC, NIOSH)
Category Archives: Blog
Low Back Pain in Pregnancy?
Pregnancy and new motherhood should be times of joy and promise – not pain. Fortunately, times have changed, you don’t have to live with pain or other problems related to pregnancy or delivery. That’s because physical therapy has changed too. It is no longer solely for joint problems; it’s also a safe, proven and widely prescribed treatment for pregnant women and new mothers.
Physical Therapy can help you manage your low back pain in pregnancy safely!
Many women experience low back pain during pregnancy. This is due to several factors such as:
- Hormonal Changes – this causes increased looseness of the pelvic ligaments to prepare your body for birthing your baby.
- Increased Weight Gain – This places increased stress on all the joints of the body. Increased breast weight can overload the neck and upper back.
- Postural Changes – Body weight shifts forward as the baby grows and this increases the arch in the lower back. Stomach muscles and the lower pelvic muscles become weaker which decreases support for the lower back.
- Altered Movement Patterns – Due to your changing body, women often begin to move in different patterns that can increase stress to the low back or pelvic joints.
A physical therapy evaluation will include an assessment of:
- Pelvic/Sacro-iliac joints
- Abdominal Musculature
- Spinal Alignment
- Strength/Flexibility
- Posture
- Body Mechanics
Treatment objectives are to:
- Reduce Pain
- Promote improved posture
- Education re: safe movement patterns
- Teach proper exercises for strengthening and flexibility and guidance toward cardiovascular fitness
The physical therapist may also plan a specialized exercise program for a pregnant or postpartum patient.
The goals and benefits of exercise for pregnant women include:
- Promotes good posture
- Increases or maintains aerobic fitness
- Improves muscle tone
- Improves sleep
- Prevents low back pain
- Reduces the risk of gestational diabetes
- Improved physiological and psychological health
- Prepares mom for labor and delivery
The goals of an exercise program for new moms (postpartum patients) are.
- Faster recovery from labor and delivery
- Increased endurance for taking care of self and baby
If you are experiencing low back pain in pregnancy please check out our Find A PT Page to find a women’s health specialist in your area.
Kinesiotaping Helpful for Lymphedema Patients
In most stages Lymphedema cannot be cured, but it can be managed. The goal of physical therapy for Lymphedema patients is to control pain and minimize swelling. As a result, we have that kinesiotaping can be helpful for lymphedema patients.
Kinesiotaping has been found to be very effective in combating and controlling swelling and Lymphedema. Kinesio tape works to decrease swelling and Lymphedema by increasing interstitial lymphatic fluid flow and enhance fluid exchange between tissue layers, thus decreasing swelling. The tape will “channel” the exudates to less congested areas through the superficial pathways. The tape gently lifts the skin, causing convolutions and creating channels of low pressure in the congested areas of the extremity. The tape is applied with very low tension to the point that the patient hardly notices the tape is there.
[ Some of the advantages of Kinesio tape are]
- The patient will have freedom of movement more than with the conventional ace wrap.
- Able to reduce Lymphedema in the trunk, head and neck – places where compression therapy is difficult
- It can help soften fibrosis
- Can be used in combination with and worn underneath compression bandage.
- The tape does not fall down the patients leg or arm like the ace tends to do as the day progresses.
- Kinesio tape can stay on for up to 3-5 days at a time instead of having to be reapplied daily.
- Patients are allowed to shower with the tape on and it won’t come off.
- The tape is hypo allergenic and very easy on the skin
- Tape can be applied in a relatively short period of time, thus not consuming a large portion of the patient’s day, to allow them more time to do other necessary daily tasks. The procedure is quick and especially effective when combined with physical therapy treatments.
It is important that Kinesio tape initially be applied by an appropriate medical professional to best utilize its abilities. Physical and occupational therapists can be trained and certified in these taping techniques. A therapist will typically conduct an evaluation and determine the best course of treatment. Professionals can use Kinesio taping in conjunction with other modalities and treatment techniques in the clinic or at home.
Patients with Lymphedema are at a higher risk of developing skin irritation. Kinesio tape is latex free, but if you do have a history of skin irritation you may want to consider opting out of taping as part of a therapy plan.
To learn more about Orthopedic Kinesiotaping visit our treatment technique section here
More PTandMe articles about Kinesio Taping can be found here:
ACL Injury Prevention and the Female Athlete
Since the passage of Title IX in 1972, girls’ participation in high school sports has increased more than 900%.1 The speed, power, and intensity displayed by female athletes have dramatically increased over the past decade. The aggressive style of play has led to an increase in musculoskeletal injuries. One of the more common is a sprain or rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). This knee injury is the most common cause of permanent disability in female high school basketball players, accounting for up to 91% of season-ending injuries and 94% of injuries requiring surgery.2 In the United States, 20,000 to 80,000 high school female athletes experience ACL injuries each year. There is an incidence rate of 1 out of 100 female high school athletes and 1 in 10 college athletes per season who are injuring their ACLs each year.
Functional Movement Screen
The system for a simple and quantifiable
method of evaluating basic movement abilities
Did you know?
500,000 injuries occur per year in high school and college football. That’s between 18-51 injuries per 100 players
Not all injuries are preventable, however…The biggest risk factor for getting injured
is a history of a previous injury.
Anatomy of a “Bad Knee”
The knee is a relatively simple joint required to do a complicated job…to provide flexible mobility while bearing considerable weight. While walking down the street, our knees bear three to five times our body weight. When climbing upstairs, that force can multiply to seven times our body weight. That force is borne by compact structures of bone and cartilage, supported by muscles and ligaments. When the knee is overstressed in sports or in everyday activities, these structures can break down — and knee injury occurs.
Stay Healthy for Those You Love
With our busy schedules, it’s easy to put our health on the sidelines; we don’t schedule regular checkups and we tell ourselves that we can deal with the pain. Today, these choices may only affect you, but as time passes and your ailments remain untreated, it has a greater chance of affecting your loved ones. We have created a small checklist to help get you started on on your path to wellness.
Healthy Foods in Healthy Portions
At some point in our lives most of us make the decision to become a healthier version of ourselves. As physical and occupational therapists we often help our patients become more active, but diet is just as important in any quest to a healthier lifestyle. As a result, we have created a simple guide to help you get started, or to help you continue on your path to healthy living in 2015.
Physical Therapy and Automobile Accidents
MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT FACTS
- The majority of auto accident injuries affects soft tissues – muscles, tendons and ligaments, which doesn’t show up on x-rays.
- Soreness and muscle pain from whiplash can signal a soft-tissue injury that may not heal on its own. Neck and back pain commonly doesn’t surface until hours or days after a car accident. The sooner you see a physical therapist the faster you will heal.
Lose Weight for Good
Many diets are rarely successful in the long term. That’s why making small changes to your existing diet can result in longer lasting results.
Try these tips and lose weight the healthy way without the backlash of immediate weight gain afterwards.
Make 2015 about you and get yourself back into a healthy lifestyle !