Tennis Elbow - So Much More than Tennis
Tennis elbow refers to a repetitive use disorder causing recurring pain on the outside of the elbow. Without treatment beyond anti-inflammatory approaches, recurrence is high
The Association of Smartphones, Back Pain in Adolescents, and Sitting Posture
For many of us, smartphones have become as essential as shoes. This greater connectivity seems to come with some orthopaedic drawbacks. You may have heard the term “text neck.”
Osteoarthritis – Belief Matters
Research out of the UK finds that 50% of people with severe, disabling knee pain do not seek a healthcare consultation.1 Why? Beliefs
Lunchtime Walks Make Happier Workers. It’s Science.
We’ve all heard that exercise is good for both the body and mind. But squeezing exercise into a modern, hectic lifestyle could be another matter. If the promise of better fitness isn’t getting you there, what if we told you exercise will help you enjoy your job more?
Serious Recurring Headaches: Targeted Strengthening Can Help
When it comes to serious headaches, people of think of being still to help them subside or avoiding activity to avoid triggering them. Exercise to prevent headaches may even sound counterintuitive. However, targeted strengthening has a lot to offer.
COPD: Exercise Therapy Dramatically Improves Breathing Outcomes
COPD appears to be on the decline in Australia. In 2013, the BOLD study reported one in seven Australians age 40+ having COPD.
Metabolism: Conventional Wisdom May be Wrong
Oh, to be young again. Many of us may remember a time when we could eat almost anything and not worry a bit about our body mass index.
Compression Garments: Are they Worth the Squeeze on Your Wallet?
For elite athletes, effective and efficient recovery proves crucial to higher levels of achievement. Better recovery allows for more rapidly increasing training loads.
ACL Injury? Start Physiotherapy Right Away.
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the four primary ligaments in the knee. It is a strong band of tissue helping to hold the knee together by connecting the front of your shin bone (tibia) to the back of the thigh bone (femur).
Some Knee Pain is Likely to Recur for Years if Not Properly Addressed
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome - There are many reasons someone may experience knee pain. Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) ranks as one of the most common. Roughly one out of four people will experience PFPS.
Remember the Medicine Ball?
Exercise and training fads come and go, but many of them worked then and would work now if you pull them out of the closet. Remember the medicine ball?
Why Most Seniors Should Rehab After Bed Rest
Bed rest serves as a time-honoured recommendation for both injury and illness. However, it’s easy to underestimate how it affects people age 60+. Retirees do not bounce back from bed rest like they may have when they were younger.
Knee Cartilage Tear? The Evidence Says Start with Physiotherapy.
The knee cartilage we are talking about here is the meniscus. Each knee has two menisci, crescent-shaped cartilage between the tibia and the femur.
Walking Once Per Day Improves COPD
Most of us know someone who suffers from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). COPD refers to a group of chronic inflammatory diseases that obstruct airflow when breathing
Acute Ankle Sprain: Supervised Physiotherapy Superior to Written Instructions
With an annual incidence of 10 ankle sprains per 1,000 people, ankle sprains prove relatively common.
Pilates for Low Back Pain
Three systematic reviews now demonstrate that Pilates is one of the supervised exercise pro grams effective in the treatment of chronic, non -specific low back pain (LBP)
How Good is Bicycling? This Good . . .
Two studies published recently in major peer-reviewed medical journals quantify how bicycling lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease.
One Quarter of Spinal Decompression Surgeries Occurring Without Receiving Physio
Low back pain ranks as the world’s leading cause of years lived with disability, resulting in a high economic burden.
Pump Up the Jams! It’s Science.
Earbuds seem ubiquitous in gyms and parks. The mood-lifting role of music in our lives is inarguable, but an interesting question remains. Does the music serve as only entertainment, or is music a performance enhancer? Science says . . . music actually enhances your workouts
Gardening: Yes, It’s That Good
As advocates for health, wellness, and injury prevention, we routinely promote exercise such as running, swimming, bicycling, weightlifting, competitive sports, etc. What matters is finding the activities that boost your heart rate for a sustained amount of time, challenge your muscles, and – most importantly – keep you interested and engaged. So what about gardening?
Emergency Department Physiotherapist Reduces Use of Opioids & Imaging
Have you ever wondered if you should wait to see a physiotherapist? Have you ever wondered why a physiotherapist would be used at a sporting event to assess injuries?
Too Much TV Kills but The Most Active People Can Get Away with It
Your mother probably told you this, but you thought she was just making it up. Actually, over the past 40 years, a number of studies have shown negative health effects related to watching TV for hours each day. A recent study, however, finds there is a way you can get away with this sedentary behavior!
Plantar Fasciosis (Heel Pain) – What Works Best?
Historically, this diagnosis has been called plantar fasciitis. The “itis” in that word means inflammation. However, histopathologic studies now show us that inflammation is not a part of the condition we have traditionally labelled plantar fasciitis.
Preventing Falls for Seniors, Advice from University of Sydney Research Team
In New South Wales, serious fall injuries are on the rise – up 72% since 2001. Accidental falls are common for Australians age 70+, and the risk of falling rises with age. Interestingly, researchers from the University of Sydney found an easy way for seniors to prevent falls themselves.
Over-the-Counter Pains Meds are Not for Long-Term Use!
When you have a headache, a cold, or an aching back, you’re likely to head out to the pharmacist and pick up some pain meds—maybe some aspirin or ibuprofen. These meds fall into the category of NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs).
Occupational Back Pain: Different and More Serious
Did you know that if back pain makes a person miss four to twelve weeks of work, th�at person will have a 40% chance of missing work for the next year?1
Most People with Arthritis Are Under 65. Early Intervention is Better.
The idea that arthritis only affects seniors stands out as one of the biggest misconceptions of the disease. Arthritis occurs more pervasively among adults age 65+, but nearly two-thirds of people with arthritis are under age 65.1 Arthritis affects people of all ages
Osteoporosis: The Right Exercise Reverses Bone Mass Loss
One in three women and one in twelve men over the age of 50 will suffer an osteoporotic fracture. Many victims of osteoporotic fractures lose the ability to live independently. What exactly is osteoporosis? It
Want to Know if Physiotherapy can Help? Research Shows One Visit is All it Takes
A recent study verified something healthcare professionals have long taken for granted. After an initial assessment, an experienced physiotherapist can predict outcomes with a fair amount of accuracy. They can accurately estimate if exercise therapy is likely to improve a person’s ability and how fast.
Strong Beats Skinny for Longer Life
People are constantly being told to watch their weight, but perhaps the advice should be, “Watch your muscle mass.”
Working from Home? Remember Your Ergonomics
Roy Morgan reports that nearly 1/3 of Australians have been working from home due to the COVID epidemic. As many of us transition to makeshift offices, new concerns over workplace ergonomics have been raised.
Low Back Pain: Passive Approaches Result in 280% Higher Recurrence
Across Australia, the cost of low back pain is on the rise, but outcomes are not improving.(1) Part of the problem may be lingering misconceptions of back pain
Accuracy of Wrist-Worn Heart Monitors
Wrist-worn smart watches and fitness monitors have become widely adopted by consumers and are gaining increased attention from researchers
Weight Loss: Aerobics Versus Resistance Training
Weight loss is a common fitness goal, and it can be highly beneficial for managing many orthopedic and metabolic conditions. With this is mind, a debate has raged for decades over the most efficient category of exercise for achieving weight loss: aerobic exercise versus resistance training.
Immediate Physiotherapy for Sciatica May Be the Way to Go
Sciatica refers to pain down the sciatic nerve, which runs from the low back down the back of each leg. It is commonly associated with back pain.
Immediate Physiotherapy for Sciatica May Be the Way to Go
Sciatica refers to pain down the sciatic nerve, which runs from the low back down the back of each leg. It is commonly associated with back pain.
Runners’ High: Why Dogs Make Better Exercise Partners than Ferrets
People who love exercise often refer to a feeling of euphoria or invincibility that washes over them during good exercise. Some experience the feeling fairly regularly, while others refer to an exceptional experience that happens only occasionally
Progress and Plateaus in Weight Loss
Many therapeutic plans may include elements designed to achieve weight loss. This can be true for strategies treating osteoarthritis, diabetes, back pain, knee pain, hip pain, and general health
How to Reduce the Riskof Accidental Falls
In New South Wales, fall-injury deaths appear to be on the rise. Compared to 2001, fall-related mortality among people age 65+ is up 72%.
What is the Best Form of Physiotherapy after Knee Replacement
In less than two decades, the number of knee replacement surgeries (specifically, total knee arthroplasties) in Australia has more than doubled
Pilates: Good for High Blood Pressure and Other Cardiovascular Risk Factors
Joseph Pilates developed the exercise system bearing his name to be a low-impact fitness routine that would be suitable for anyone. In an exercise class, a 60-year-old could perform Pilates side by side with a 20-year-old, with both of them getting a good workout
Can You Prevent Fall Injuries by Taking Vitamins?
There has been an explosion of research around vitamin D - more than 2,000 studies in the past seven years. One of the interesting ideas around vitamin D coming to light is the proposition that it can prevent fall injuries.
Blood Sugar: There is a Better Time for Walking
It is well established that physical activity is good for diabetes and managing blood sugar. Regular exercise is thought to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes
Shoulder Pain: What Works? What Doesn’t?
Shoulder pain is common and increases with age. It’s associated with reduced sports performance, cessation of sports, time off work, and reduced quality of life.
Sciatica: More Persistent Than Many Realise
Sciatica refers to pain down the sciatic nerve, which runs from the low back down the back of each leg. It’s commonly held that patients recover in four to six weeks, usually without surgery
Gamify Your Fitness and Weight Management Routine
A study published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association adds to the mounting research showing how gamification gets people more involved with their fitness and rehab routines.(1) What’s more, researchers compared different types of gamification and found one to be the obvious winner.
Document Holders: Do They Really Help?
Many people prefer having devices that hold pages upright near their computers. At first glance, they appear to improve the ergonomics of computer workstations, which can reduce fatigue, improve productivity, and prevent repetitive stress disorders leading to neck and shoulder pain
Inguinal Disruption: It’s Not a Hernia
The professional understanding of inguinal disruption (chronic and acute groin pain) has evolved dramatically over the past decade - including just deciding what to call it
Inactivity More Deadly than Obesity
Did you know that twice as many premature deaths occur due to lack of activity compared to the premature deaths attributed to obesity? The good news is that even a little exercise goes a long way.
What is Postural Balance, and the Role of Pilates
Would you like to improve your balance? Did you know balance may come in two parts or how to train in a way that improves balance? A new systematic review and meta-analysis concludes that Pilates has high practical effects on improving postural balance, even among healthy older adults
