Managing Tendonitis A tendon, by definition, is a flexible but strong band of fibrous tissue that attaches muscle to bone. The tendons in your body transmit the force from a muscle contraction to a bone, which creates movement. Tendonitis, literally means “inflamed tendon” and is commonly treated in Physical Therapy practice. The most prevalent forms of tendonitis are achilles tendonitis or posterior tibialis tendonitis in the foot, lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow) or medial epi...

Does your insurance plan have a high copay for physical therapy services? Many people have discovered, much to their surprise, that their insurance copay for physical therapy services is significantly higher than the copay for a visit to their primary care physician.  Most health insurance plans designate physical therapist services in the “specialist” category which enables them to charge a higher copay for these services.  It is not uncommon for some insurance carriers t...

Direct Access to Physical Therapy In New York State, like most states, people can access physical therapy services directly without the need for physician referral. There are several advantages to direct access.  There is a growing body of evidence that physical therapy direct access can be part of the solution to the high costs and inefficiencies of our current health care system. First, a more direct route to the physical therapist reduces the time between an injury, or the onset of a p...

             Meniscal Tears A recently published research report has received attention this past week in US news outlets. The study, conducted in Finland and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, was centered on a very common orthopedic condition: meniscal tears in the knee. This clinical trial took a sample of people diagnosed with meniscal tears, and randomly assigned them to either an arthroscopic surgery group or a sha...

QUICK TIPS ON NEW YEAR’S RESOULTION SUCCESS With the New Year right around the corner, many will soon flock to the gym in hopes of accomplishing (finally!) their health and fitness goals. To maximize the potential for success during this New Year’s resolution, some helpful tips are in order. 1.) Set REALISTIC goals – In order to avoid the primary pitfalls of most resolutions (ie quitting in early January, getting injured, etc.), one must set realistic goals. The key to a real...