Orthopedics & Sports-Injuries

At Hands-On Physical Therapy we value the importance of manual therapy, customized therapeutic exercise, patient education and comprehensive home exercise programs.

Our goal is to facilitate an expedited, successful return to the individual’s pre-injury level of activity and to reduce recurrence of injury. All care is provided one-on-one for 60 minutes by a highly qualified, licensed physical therapist and extensive clinical experience in manual therapy techniques and orthopedic/ sports-injuries rehabilitation. We are experienced in McKenzie, Maitland, Mulligan, McConnell, Butler, Travell, Cyriax, Kaltenborn, Elvey, Sahrmann and Jull approaches and their applications.

Our approach:

• Perform a thorough initial evaluation
• Make an assessment
• Customize and carry out an effective treatment plan
• Instruct in a goal-oriented home exercise program
• Provide guidance for a safe return to activity or sports
• You will work with the same Physical Therapist throughout your rehab process

Conditions we frequently treat:

• Lumbar, thoracic and cervical spine conditions – disc, facet and myofascial pathologies, stenosis, and spondylosis
• Peripheral joint injuries – sprains/ strains, tendonitis, bursitis, “frozen shoulder”, osteoarthritis and repetitive use injuries, (for example impingement syndrome, carpal tunnel syndrome, patello-femoral syndrome, plantar fasciitis)
• Post-surgical rehabilitation – post-meniscectomy, sub-acromial decompression, rotator cuff repair, labrum/ “SLAP” repair, ankle reconstruction, post-laminectomy / post spinal fusion, hip and knee joint replacement
• Sports injuries – patello-femoral pain, “runners’ knee”, anterior cruciate ligament ( ACL) reconstruction, “swimmer’s shoulder”, ankle ligament sprains, “tennis/golfer’s elbow”, hamstring muscle strains, Achilles tendonitis and injuries due to faulty biomechanics and Plantar fasciitis.

Treatment may include:

• Spinal mobilization or manipulation to restore range of motion and reduce pain
• Joint repositioning techniques for spinal or peripheral joints
• Specific therapeutic exercises to increase muscle power
• Supervised proprioception exercises to improve balance and coordination
• Electrotherapeutic modalities such as ultrasound, electrical muscle stimulation

Sports-injury treatment may additionally include

• Biofeedback EMG – to ensure accurate muscle recruitment eg. vastus medialis obliquus (VMO) muscle in cases of patello-femoral pain or for transverse abdominis muscle activation during back stabilization exercises
• Corrective taping for reduction of pain or injury prevention
• Sports-simulated exercises and “return to sport” guidelines
• Core strengthening
• Orthotic fitting