Health blog Category: Physical Therapy
Is there a difference between a strain and a sprain?
Spring is finally here; we are enjoying the warmer weather, and also engaging in more activities. It’s also that time of year we start seeing some minor injuries occur with all age groups. Sprains and strains are pretty common minor injuries. People usually like to use them interchangeably to describe the same injury, however there are differences.
A sprain involves the ligaments in a joint. Ligaments attach bone to bone and are there for stability. A strain involves the muscles that attach to a joint. A strain can involve a tendon or a muscle itself. Tendons are the connections between muscles and bones. The other main difference between the two is that a strain will involve some sort of bruising around the joint, whereas a sprain will possibly cause some muscle spasms. Both injuries will likely involve swelling, limited range of motion, and pain.
Read full blogMorning commute have you sitting in traffic…
Neck pain and tightness is something that we all may experience from time to time for different reasons. However, chronic pain or tightness often has a deeper issue than just sleeping wrong one night. Poor posture and muscular weakness is often the culprit for neck issues. We spend so much time with our heads down and shoulders rounded while using our phones, shoulders hunched while driving or doing daily activities, and the like, that we don’t even notice we’re training our body to give us issues.
Read full blogLoosen Up Those Stiff Joints
At some point or another in life we experience joint stiffness. What actually is “joint stiffness?” It is a
situation in the body where we feel tightness in the parts of our body that bend, like the elbows, wrists,
shoulders, hips, knees, neck, lower back, and ankles.
Below are some of the most common causes of joint stiffness:
- muscular tightness
- capsular/ligamentous tightness
- muscle weakness causing poor joint alignment and tracking
- loss of joint space with osteoarthritis
- rheumatoid arthritis
- structural damage from wear and tear or injury and the resulting inflammation
Joint stiffness presents with the sensation of not being able to fully rotate, bend, or extend a joint in the
body.
What causes that muscle cramp or “charlie horse”?
By: Jeremy Schain, DPT
Without a doubt, many of you throughout the course of your lives have suffered a“Charlie horse” or “pulled a hamstring” while running, playing a sport, performing activity or simply while going about your daily life. Have you ever wondered what causes this to occur? Furthermore, how can they be treated and how can they be prevented in the future?
The hamstring is actually a group of three muscles:
- The biceps femoris
- The semitendinosis
- The semimembranosis)
These muscles work together to bend the knee as well as extend the hip.
Read full blogWhere do Most of Us Carry Our Stress?
Neck problems are becoming more common due our sedentary lifestyles putting more stress on our neck and shoulders. How often do we use computers and phones throughout the day? Now think about your posture whenever you use these devices. Chances are, there’s probably room for improvement there.
Posture plays a large role in maintaining neck health and limits your chance of developing problems that can negatively affect your daily activities. Issues with your neck are commonly associated with pain, headaches, and general stiffness.
How your shoes can impact your feet and ankles
Foot and ankle conditions are very common for every age group. We treat general pain and injuries in this part of the body often at Loudoun Sports Therapy because even if it’s just general discomfort, foot and ankle conditions cause a lot of problems with daily, functional activities. The most frequent complaint we see in the clinic is pain at the ankle joint that can radiate up into the leg or down into the heel. This symptom often causes the patient to have difficulty walking or standing for a prolonged period of time.
Read full blogDiscomfort interrupting workouts, sleep and work?
Q&A
- How does back pain usually start?
Many times back pain starts from a specific incident where you overexerted yourself, lifted something improperly, performed more of an activity than you were used to, sitting/standing more prolonged amount of time, or a traumatic incident. Often times it is a combination of several of these things. Sometimes it doesn’t hurt right away, but may begin to bother you several days later.
Read full blogTired of Joint Stiffness and Arthritis Dictating Activities…
Arthritis is a common reason people seek physical therapy because, quite frankly, they get tired of joint stiffness and joint pain dictating what activities they are able to do. While there is no cure for arthritis as it is a degenerative disease, there are ways you can manage the pain and also increase your activity level.
You’ve probably heard the word ‘osteoarthritis’ but what exactly does it mean and what are the symptoms?
How many times a day do we have to reach overhead?
By Rachel Herrmann, DPT
The shoulder is a complex region of the body made up of three joints, four muscles of the rotator cuff and over 10 other muscles that attach around the bones/joints that make up the shoulder. This means there has to be a lot of body parts in good working condition in order to have a healthy and happy shoulder.
One common shoulder issue is called impingement. This is when the muscles of the rotator cuff become subjected to repeated pinching in between the rounded head of the humerus bone and the acromion process, a bony prominence from the shoulder blade that forms a roof over top of the ball and socket joint.
Standing a lot during the day…
We spend a lot of time on our feet so it’s no wonder foot and ankle pain, discomfort in the heel and arches are common problems for every age group. Foot and ankle problems make daily, functional activities such as standing, walking and using stairs difficult. In addition, it can also mean we have trouble going from a seated position to a standing one without pain. Even taking just a few steps can be painful due to muscle tightness and joint stiffness.
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