Otago Exercise Program To Reduce Falls

During the 2016 Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Fall Conference, we were approached by a few therapists asking if PT-Helper included Otago exercises. At the time, we were not aware of Otago and decided that we needed to find out more. A quick online search revealed that the Otago Exercise Program is an evidence-based program developed in New Zealand to reduce falls among older adults.

The Carolina Geriatric Education Center at the UNC School of Medicine has been training physical therapists to use the Otago Exercise Program resulting in a 35-40% fall reduction rate.

Every year, as many as 1/3rd of all older adults will suffer a fall. Reducing these fall rates with a progressive prevention program can save serious injury and many other complications.

PT-Helper has added Otago exercises to its database for therapists to prescribe to their patients. The exercises can be quickly found by searching for "Otago" in the Add Exercise page or duplicating the global Otago Exercise template into your local CONNECT template.

For older adults with significant balance concerns, you may want to recommend that they do their balance exercises with their hand over the kitchen sink providing them with an easy mechanism to grasp the edge should they loose balance. Dr. Stephen Kanter PT, DPT, ATC of the International Multiple Sclerosis Management Practice recommends this safety approach to his neuromotor patients.

Sign up for the FREE 30-day trial for CONNECT exercise prescription service, it's only $20/month with unlimited number of patients after the free trial. Sign up here today.

Pediatric Physical Therapy Exercises

We have added pediatric exercises to our CONNECT library which are also accessible via the mobile app. Infant Pediatric Physical Therapy Exercises are for parents to work with their children. Our animated illustrations on the app show parents the correct positioning and process for each exercise. Feel free to share with your patients in need!

Some examples of illustrations for Left Torticollis:

Find out more on our website...

Neuromotor Exercises for people with Multiple Sclerosis

We have added Neuromotor exercises that are recommended for people with Multiple Sclerosis to our CONNECT library which are also accessible via the home exercise mobile app. Working in conjunction with Dr. Stephen Kanter PT, DPT, ATC, the exercises that have been added to PT-Helper include both good and bad behavioral instructions, safety preparatory positions, and active exercises. Dr. Kanter has worked with patients with Multiple Sclerosis and patients with balance, gait and endurance impairments. Dr. Kanter is currently the Supervisor, Rehabilitation Services at International Multiple Sclerosis Management Practice.

PT-Helper will be participating in the 19th Annual MS Patient Education Symposium on October 16, 2016 hosted by the TISCH MS Research Center of New York. People with Multiple Sclerosis, their family members and caregivers are welcome to attend for FREE! Registration is required at www.tischms.org.

PT-Helper is proud to sponsor Team Tisch MS.

Shoulder Conditioning

We noticed a large number of people are coming to our website searching for shoulder exercises. With this observation in mind, we would like to share a Rotator Cuff and Shoulder Conditioning Program from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Opioid Use #ChoosePT

Awareness of prescriptive opioid abuse in the United States has gained national attention with drug overdose deaths hitting a record number in 2014. Over 50% of those deaths involve a prescriptive opioid. In addition, opioid dependence has led to a rise of 3000% in medical services.

How Do I Improve My Posture

In this article "You Asked: How Do I Improve My Posture?", many posture problems stem from sitting all day at work. Among the recommendations to improve posture include having a properly arranged workstation, changing postures frequently, and stretching. Dr. Mary Ann Wilmarth of Back2Back Physical Therapy recommends taking a break every hour to stretch.

Dr. Brad Stotsky of BreakOut Advisors and Rehabilitation has recommended the following exercises that you can do at or near your desk for your posture, neck and back. As with any set of exercises, you should consult your medical professional or trained physical therapist before starting.

What to look out for AFTER the marathon

You can see it… the finish line! After months of training and pushing your body and mind to the limit, you have finally reached your goal and completed a major bucket-list item. No matter what distance is covered, running takes a toll on your body and you will feel discomfort. For some seasoned runners, it might just be post race stiffness and some muscle soreness for a couple of days (lucky!). For others it may be cramping, muscle pain, aching joints and even a few lost toenails. Unfortunately, some of you may experience an injury during or after the race. Sometimes these injuries take a while to work their way to the surface, after the adrenaline and post-race stories have worn out their welcome, days or even weeks later. Regardless if you have signed up for another race or plan on never running another race again, these injuries can affect your daily life. Walking, getting up out of a chair, climbing stairs or even just sitting at your desk could be uncomfortable. So the question is: “What do I do about it now?”.