Lower Extremity Review
Researchers from the UK have identified three subgroups of individuals with patellofemoral pain (PFP) that can be determined using simple evidence-based clinical tests—a key first step toward developing targeted treatment strategies as part of the ongoing effort to improve PFP outcomes.
By Jessie Janssen, PhD; James Selfe, DSc; Michael Callaghan, PhD; Chris Sutton, PhD; Paola Dey, PhD; and Jim Richards, PhD
Multiple studies suggest that mouthguards, designed to protect athletes from dental injuries during contact sports, may also help improve muscle force and power. But plenty of other studies have found no such benefits, and even the experts aren’t sure what to believe.
By Cary Groner
In lower extremity healthcare, as in politics, it hasn’t been easy for women to succeed in traditionally male-dominated roles. The gender demographics have shifted toward parity over time—in some specialties more than others—but challenges still remain.
By Emily Delzell
Increasingly, lower extremity practitioners are realizing the clinical importance of patient communication. They’re also starting to realize that effective communication requires more than just using the right words.
By Hank Black
Researchers are investigating how changes during pregnancy may affect the lower extremities in the long term, as well as ways to treat and prevent these issues.
By Lori Roniger
Partially occluding blood flow to the limbs, in combination with low-load resistance exercise, appears to facilitate hypertrophy and strength gains in athletes and others while protecting the joints from damaging stresses.
By Cary Groner
The use of detailed orthopedic imaging to examine dancers’ ankles while in the en pointe position offers insight into the biomechanical demands associated with a position that, although highly unnatural, is nevertheless essential to a ballerina’s performance.
By Jeffrey A. Russell, PhD, AT, FIADMS
Experts say perplexing studies suggesting that smoking may be protective against the development of knee osteoarthritis (OA) should not deter clinicians’ efforts to discourage smoking—even in patients who are at risk for OA.
By Barbara Boughton
Over the course of a season, collegiate pitchers undergo changes in hip rotational range of motion and hip strength—changes that could increase injury risk or negatively affect performance.
By Giorgio Zeppieri Jr, MPT, SCS, CSCS
It’s not surprising that tactile interaction with a smartphone while walking can increase the risk of traumatic injury, but texting while walking also affects gait in ways that may ultimately have long-term effects.
By Shalmali Pal
In an attempt to decrease the risk of re-rupture and revision surgery after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, practitioners are refining the decision process regarding which procedure is best for which patient.
By Cary Groner
For many patients, the ability of an ankle foot orthosis to enhance propulsion is key to improving gait efficiency and reducing fatigue. But experts are only beginning to understand the biomechanical complexities that influence propulsion, which start with push-off but don’t end there.
By Cary Groner
Four years later, the ongoing discussion of the relative merits of surgical and nonsurgical management of Achilles tendon rupture is starting to affect practice patterns – even in the US.
By Cary Groner
As the popularity of foam rollers escalates, researchers are scrambling to document the therapy’s effects and tease out the possible underlying mechanisms, which now appear to be more complicated than the earliest investigators had hypothesized.
By Cary Groner
Healthcare education materials for patients are consistently written at a reading level too advanced for a significant number of people–a trend that affects all aspects of lower extremity care and can adversely affect clinical outcomes.
By Hank Black
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