Restoring Posture and Movement in Frail and Elderly Patients
Frail and elderly patients are a challenging and rewarding group to effectively rehabilitate. I’m reaching out to those in the community who have interest in geriatrics, PRI or both. I hope you can join us for PRI for Geriatrics at Advance Physical Therapy in Chapel Hill, NC on September 9-10th, 2017. This is a unique, clinically oriented course that focuses on frail and elderly patients […]
Got Scoliosis? You’re Not Alone!!
Scoliosis: Girls and boys experience scoliosis at about the same rate, most often during their early teenage years. Girls, however, are far more likely to experience larger spine curvatures requiring, x-rays, therapy, bracing and sometimes surgery. This can add a lot of stress, fear and confusion to an already challenging time of life. Often kids […]
What is Scoliosis Specific Exercise?
Scoliosis can have many forms. We have general categories for scoliosis and spine curvatures, but each is unique. Scoliosis Specific Exercise are designed to balance scoliosis curves. They address the unique curvatures of each person. Asymmetry is something all scoliosis curves have in common. Asymmetries occur in 3 dimensions: 1) Front to back, 2) Side […]
Spine Fusion Treatment with Postural Restoration
Patients and therapists often feel there is nothing to treat once the spine is fused. They feel it is too late. Patients can feel “stuck” in their fused postures and struggle with bending, turning and walking. Pain may develop in joints that are misused to make up for lost movement after fusion. Patients are often […]
Scoliosis and the Importance of Early Intervention
If you are reading this, there’s a good chance you or your child has scoliosis. I’m going to guess you have a pretty good sense of what scoliosis is. The most frustrating part for you might be trying to figure out what to do about it. Your MD may have said, “Come back in 4-6 […]
Nutrition: A Missing Link in Joint Pain
Nutrition may be your missing link? At Advance Physical Therapy, we are interested in more than the parts of you that hurt. We want to know how your whole system is working together (or not). Because of this, we often ask about your general fitness, hearing and vision. In addition, we will likely ask about […]
The Importance of Arm Swing During Walking and Running
Arm swing is becoming a forgotten part of walking. We live in an era of cell phones, groceries, strollers, large purses and any number of other growing encumbrances. The ability to swing our arms freely is being lost. We forget that as mammals who happen to be up on two legs that our arms continue […]
Are High Arches Giving You Knee Pain?
Here is an image of a person with knee pain in her athletic footwear: I am likely to find knee pain in this body because of the “attitude” depicted above at the feet. When the feet and shoes roll outward, weight is no longer distributed evenly through the whole foot as intended at rest. This […]
SCIENTIFIC EXERCISES APPROACH TO SCOLIOSIS (SEAS)
Postural Restoration Institute® (PRI) Method, Schroth Scoliosis Rehab, Inc. and now A Third Method to Conservatively Treat Scoliosis at Advance Physical Therapy Lisa Mangino, pediatric physical therapist from Advance Physical Therapy, traveled to Avanti Therapy in Boulder, Colorado in September to learn about the Scientific Exercises Approach to Scoliosis (SEAS) method. The speakers, Michele Romano […]
Tai Chi Best Exercise for Balance
“Slow, deliberate movements (as with Tai Chi) improve your stability and protect against falls.” Check out the article from the Harvard Health Blog on Tai Chi: http://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/best-exercise-for-balance-tai-chi
Chronic Pain in Physical Therapy Students
Our own, Jean Massé, PT, DPT, PRC, OCS, ATC is an adjunct professor at The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She teaches physical therapy students about chronic pain, scoliosis and diagnosis. Over the years of her teaching at UNC Chapel Hill, she has had many students approach her with their own chronic pain […]
Surviving the Gym with Sensory Awareness
Getting to the gym to exercise with the intention of improving fitness and wellness is a great challenge and therefore a great achievement when accomplished. It is, however, beyond disheartening to see people in their chosen exercise routines working really hard at hurting themselves, either with their “trainers” or on their own. Most of us […]
All Scoliosis Braces Are Not The Same. You Be The Judge…
Comparison of the Boston and the Rigo-Cheneau Rigid Scoliosis Braces My colleagues (Susan Henning PT, PRC, Advanced Schroth Certified, Jean Masse PT, PRC Advanced Schroth Certified) and I (Lisa Mangino PT, PRC, Advanced Schroth Certified) at Advance Physical Therapy are seeing the positive effects that a good scoliosis brace can have on the growing spine […]
How About My Aching Sacroiliac Joint?
Our bodies are amazingly capable of compensating, allowing us to continue to move and function in our busy lives. Unfortunately, compensation often comes with a cost. The Sacroiliac joint (SI joint) is a common source of compensation and pain when movement elsewhere in the body becomes problematic. The most common issue I see in the […]
Treating Scoliosis Conservatively: Getting the Message Out
Last month, our own Lisa Mangino PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC was invited to Fayettville NC to present on “Current Concepts in 3 Dimensional Conservative Management of Scoliosis”. The objectives of the presentation were to help therapists gain an understanding of body imbalances related to scoliosis, to learn about scoliosis measurement tools and x-rays, and […]
Physical Therapy Treatment for Shortness of Breath
One of the benefits of improving core strength through the Postural Restoration approach, is that is requires us to establish efficient breathing patterns (http://www.posturalrestoration.com/the-science/treatment). In doing so, many of my patients that come in with back or neck pain subsequently report that their breathing has improved along with their pain reduction. I have recently seen […]
Wow! Science Helps Understand “Your Brain in Pain”
This is what a pain pathway, known as a “neurotag” might look like in your brain: Yup! Complicated. That’s a lot to take in isn’t it? The main idea though is that each person will experience pain in a unique way and in different parts of the brain, based on their experiences, perception, fear and […]
A Physical Therapist Describes Treatment at Advance Physical Therapy
Tell us about your experience at Advance Physical Therapy (APT) and how your function has improved since beginning physical therapy. My reason for coming to APT was to address a mild scoliosis. While not debilitating or the source of intractable pain, it has contributed to severe muscle tension throughout my shoulders and neck, and it […]
67 year old female with a 52 degree lumbar curve due to scoliosis….
The following is a recent testimonial from a patient who traveled from Wilmington to Advance Physical Therapy in Chapel Hill for treatment of scoliosis and kyphosis: I have a smaller thoracic curve and kyphosis as well. I have tried different physical therapists, acupuncture, massage and exercise but nothing worked for the pain I was experiencing […]
Postural Restoration for Children
At the last Capitol District Physical Therapy Association meeting, my colleague, Lisa Mangino, PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC, offered a terrific presentation on how she uses principles of Postural Restoration with children. Lisa reminded participants that the human body is inherently asymmetrical and is biased toward patterns of extension. Sensory awareness of posture, the ground, […]
Tips to Change Habits for Tension Relief
Focal vision refers to being focused on something small at any distance, from your phone to a golf ball far away on the green. Technology is partly contributing to our society becoming more focally near-sighted. The more you focus on a bright device 6-12 inches from your nose, the stronger those brain pathways become. Other contributors include being too busy, always striving to be faster, better, to do more, and not taking time to rest… your muscles AND your eyes.
Do You Have a Balance Problem?
Most people acknowledge a balance problem only after they experience a fall. Understanding potential signs of balance problems will help keep you from becoming a statistic. If you identify with 1 or more of following statements you may have a balance problem. If you find 4 or more to be true for you, you are […]
Poor Posture, Poor Core Control, Difficulty Breathing
Too much “Doing” and not enough “Being”: a recipe for pain and poor performance. There are fundamental principles for healthy core body alignment and breathing. When these essential elements are missing, postural compensations, strain and less efficient movement strategies become habits that often lead to pain and or inefficiency of movement. What are the essentials? […]