Health blog Category: Physical Therapy
Tightness in Hamstrings
We’ve all been there, we spend a long time sitting and when we go to stand up and walk we feel a pull in the back of our thigh and feel like we can’t stand completely upright. Those tight muscles we feel stiffening up are our hamstrings. These are the muscles that we commonly feel to be tight or restricting with our motion in our legs or sometimes our lower backs. The hamstrings are a large muscle group made up of 3 muscles:
- semitendinosus
- semimembranosus
- biceps femoris
These muscles attach from the bottom of our pelvis to just below our knee.
Read full blogShoulder Dislocations
What is a shoulder dislocation?
The shoulder joint is called a ball-and-socket joint. The ball is the rounded top of the bone in the upper arm (humerus), which fits into the socket — the cup-shaped outer part of the shoulder blade. When the top of the humerus moves out of its usual location in the shoulder joint, the shoulder is said to be dislocated. A related injury called a shoulder subluxation occurs when the top of the humerus is only partially displaced and not totally out of its socket.
Read full blogWhy Does Our Back Hurt?
Low Back Pain is one of the most common reasons for disability in Americans and impacts a very large portion of the population. You may be wondering why this is.
Contributors of Low Back Pain
There are many contributors to this type of pain, some being:
- living a sedentary life-style
- being overweight
- core weakness
- sitting for large portions of the day
- trauma
- muscle imbalances
- overall aging
Our population is living longer than ever before, but with that comes increased degenerative changes occurring.
Read full blogSetting Goals in 2021
What a year! We’re finally in 2021! The beginning of a New Year always comes with a new set of goals to achieve. At LSTC, we’re all about helping people reach their physical goals. In fact, some of the goals we helped people reach in 2020 were:
- Back to golfing
- Picking up a baby without pain
- Back to running
- Back to motocross
- Completing triathlons and the like…
- Sleeping comfortably
- Doing necessary household chores without wincing
- Managing concussions and getting students back to school and sports
- Dancing again without pain
- Taking trips out of the country pain free
- And so much more…
So what are your goals for 2021?
Read full blogWhat is the IT Band?
The IT Band is a part of body that is somewhat of a mystery to many. You’ve probably heard of the it but are you confident about where it is or what it does? We’ll answer these questions today. The IT band is the abbreviation for the iliotibial band. This band is an extension of your hip muscles. It is a long band of connective tissue or fascia that runs down the outside of your thigh from your hip to just below your knee.
Read full blogResults of Not Treating Neck Problems
Think back to the times when you have fallen asleep in an awkward position and had the unexpected pleasure of waking up to a “crick in your neck.” You know when you have an aching neck it makes it very difficult to turn your head to check your blind spots when driving, bend your head forward to check your cell phone, or enjoy knitting or crocheting without discomfort or pain.
Now let’s say you’re like most people who think “oh, it’s not that bad”. When not handled appropriately and immediately, this small “crick” in your neck can lead to:
- Tension headaches
- Facet joint (the junction between two neck vertebrae) dysfunction
- Inability to perform daily tasks safely
Good News! Physical Therapy can address many of these ‘pain in the neck’ problems. It’s important to remember that in order to address any kind of pain or discomfort for good, you need to handle the root cause of that problem.
Read full blogStructures of Our Hips
The hip joint is one of the most stable joints in the body, but unfortunately that does not keep this joint and region of the body from developing issues and producing pain.
There are multiple structures in and around this joint that can produce pain in this area of the body:
- Labrum– the ring of cartilage around the rim of the socket of the hip joint. Tears can produce symptoms of:
- catching
- locking
- giving out of the joint
- Hip abnormalities– abnormalities in the shape, size, or position of the ball or socket of the hip joint that can cause instability of the joint, pinching of the hip and a deep pain.
Rotator Cuff Tears
We often hear about the rotator cuff (RTC) and how much pain and annoyance it can cause a person. Unfortunately, most people are not given good education on the actual causes, prognosis, and anatomy of the rotator cuff. Below are some examples of causes for rotator cuff tears, anatomy of the rotator cuff, and how best to address the rotator cuff tear.
Anatomy of the RTC
The rotator cuff is a combination of a few smaller muscles of the shoulder including:
- Supraspinatus
- Infraspinatus
- Subscapularis
- Teres Minor
These muscles help with rotating the arm up and back.
Read full blogLower Back Problems: A Common Complaint
Lower back problems are one of the most common complaints we encounter in physical therapy. The majority of adults will experience back pain at some point in their lifetime. The back pain they experience may only last a short time or it could linger for months. Back pain affects men and women equally and can even be seen in children and teenagers.
Structures in our Back
There are many different structures that are at risk for injury in your lower back.
Read full blogFeatures of Sciatica
Sciatica refers to pain that radiates from the back, deep into the buttock and down into the back of the leg. This is generally caused by compression and irritation to the sciatic nerve. Sciatica generally develops over time due to repetitive postures or physical activity; for example individuals who do a lot of sitting are at greater risk.
Features of Sciatica:
- Pain- is generally described as a sharp shooting pain or burning sensation deep into the buttock that can travel down into the leg and foot.
