Health blog
October is National Physical Therapy Month
By Kate Zanoni, LPTA
October is National Physical Therapy Month! The annual commemoration, held by the American Physical Therapy Association (or APTA), is designed to recognize the impact that physical therapists (PTs) and physical therapist assistants (PTAs) make on their patients’ lives.
Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants use hands-on manual therapy treatments and prescriptive exercises to help their patients restore mobility and strength, improving activities of daily living, sleep quality and recreational activities.
Three Common Knee Problems and What Physical Therapy Can Do
Knee injuries are one of the most common injuries that we see in physical therapy, whether it’s due to a sports-related injury or due to degenerative changes that occur as we age. Some of the most common knee injuries include:
- Sprains and strains
- Osteoarthritis
- Ligament injuries
- Meniscus injuries
All of these cause pain, weakness and a decrease in functional activities.
Ligament injuries
Ligament Injuries are more common among the active patient population.
Read full blogKeep Athletes Competing: Proper Warm-Up and Adequate Stretching
By: Cierra Washington, ATC
Do you know what constitutes a complete warm-up? Too often, sports-related injuries occur and could have been easily prevented had the athlete thoroughly prepared their body for practices and games. So what is an appropriate warm-up? The warm-up, which typically lasts between 10-15 minutes, feeds the body. Whether it’s a run, a jog, a swim or a brisk walk, the change in activity does several things:
- It increased the blood supply to the muscles
- It increases the heart rate
- It begins to produce more lubrication for the smooth joint motion
Now that the body is warm, the next step is to thoroughly stretch.
Read full blogGet Rid of Nagging Back Problems for Good
By: Abbey Fecher, DPT
Lower back problems are very prevalent in our society and can greatly limit your ability to carry out daily tasks. Unfortunately, many people think it is just something they have to “live with” so they try to push through the pain. Thankfully, physical therapy can be extremely beneficial for resolving lower back pain thus greatly improving your quality of life.
When it comes to this condition, the number one complaint is pain and stiffness localized to the lower back which gets worse when you stand, walk or are in one position for a prolonged period of time.
Keep Our Athletes Competing: How PT Can Help Prevent Sports-related Injuries
By: LSTC Clinical Staff
This time of year, it common for us to see an influx of athletes at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center with fall sports starting. Athletes often try to get back on the field as quickly as possible after suffering from an injury in practice or a game OR they attempt to re-condition their bodies after being relatively inactive in the off-season.
No matter how well-conditioned your athlete is, though, injuries can still occur.
How to Test Your Balance and Fall Risk
By Devin Wurman, DPT
The goal of Balance Awareness Month is to reduce the time it takes to diagnose a vestibular or inner ear disorder and help people suffering from conditions like vertigo, dizziness and those who have trouble balancing. Medical experts say falls are the number one cause of death and non-fatal injuries in older adults and six out of ten falls occur in the home.
Try these simple tips to help prevent falls in your home:
- Arrange or remove furniture so there is ample space to walk around in each room.
Hip Pain and Hamstring Strains
Hamstring strains and injuries can often lead to hip pain – a common condition we treat at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center. The hamstring muscle group is located on the back side of the thigh and is made up of three muscles. These three muscles originate on the hip bone and attach at the knee joint. When these muscles contract, the knee bends into a flexed position. When they relax, the knee is able to straighten back out.
Read full blogDon’t Let Shoulder Problems Throw You Off Your Game
By Danielle Hoguet, DPT
Shoulder pain is one of the most common problems we treat here at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center. Whether it’s a athlete such as a swimmer or baseball player who have pain while performing, or a parent who can’t pick up their child without pain, we treat patients of all ages for problems in the shoulder that prevent them from doing their normal activities.
Shoulder pain can be the result of several factors.
September is Balance Awareness Month
By Devin Wurman, DPT
Happy Balance Awareness Month! The goal of this month is to reduce the time it takes to diagnose a vestibular or inner ear disorder and help people suffering from conditions like vertigo, dizziness and those who have trouble balancing. I’ve seen many patients over the years that have come to me for dizziness whether they were referred by their physician or found me through the internet. While many of these patients do in fact have a vestibular disorder, others do not. It’s important to educate our patients and the public about symptoms of vestibular disorders.
What is a vestibular disorder? A true vestibular disorder is when something goes awry with your inner ear and the part of your brain that processes sensory information involved with controlling balance and eye movements.
Handle Hip Pain Before It Keeps You Off Your Feet
By Abbey Fecher, DPT
Hip pain is a very common problem we treat here at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center and it can result in difficulty with many daily activities. People frequently come to physical therapy with different complaints involving the hip. The number one complaint being pain localized to the hip joint and muscles surrounding the joint. Some people also experience stiffness in and around the hip and even the lower back.