March 2023
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Cover Story
Hunting is a popular activity in the United States (US). In 2020, over 15 million hunting licenses were sold in the US, with approximately 4.6% of the US population issued a hunting license that year.1 However, injuries due to firearms and other weapons may occur while hunting. Research using data from the Inter-University Consortium for...
By Mathias B. Forrester, BS
Editorial Observations
As I stuffed the old water aerobic shoes into the recycle bag, I felt terrible pangs of sadness, like losing a friend who had endured a long journey with me. I’d been through a lot in those shoes. I lost 40 pounds in those shoes.
By Janice T. Radak, Editor
Features
Plantar warts have plagued humans for thousands of years, but newer therapies, including immunotherapy and microwave treatments, offer promise in improving therapeutic outcomes for these frustrating challenges. Warts and verrucae are benign growths occurring in the skin and mucous membranes due to infection with various strains of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
By Ivan Bristow, PhD, FFPM, RCPS (Glasg)
We all know that several of the things we’ve been doing for years to treat plantar warts are just not that effective. It’s frustrating for the patients and it’s frustrating for us as clinicians. So we have to think outside the box. And that’s what got me interested in learning more about microwave therapy for this everyday condition that...
By Robert Conenello, DPM, FACFAS
It has been demonstrated that foot problems increase the risk of falls in older people. Fear of falling has been described as ongoing concern about falling that ultimately limits the performance of daily activities.
By Fateme Pol, Zahra Khajooei, Sayed Mohsen Hosseini, Alireza Taheri, Saeed Forghany, and Hylton B. Menz
The 3 aspects of pain – mechanical, inflammatory, and neuropathic – should be considered, tracked and discussed at every visit for patients on a rehabilitation pathway. In this book on mechanical treatments for various injuries and pain syndromes, a discussion into the 3 sources of pain is as crucial as an understanding of the 3 phases of...
By Richard Blake, DPM
ShortTakes From the Literature
As medical use of cannabis becomes more common in the treatment of chronic pain, these researchers wanted to better understand the patient perspective of this therapy. Based on semi-structured interviews with 13 chronic pain patients at a hospital-based clinic in Ontario, Canada, patients reported reduced pain...
Researchers from McGill University and Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research in Montreal, Canada, took on the task of examining the ethical considerations physicians face when patients admit to cannabis-impaired driving. As of October 2018, dried forms of cannabis became legal in Canada for adults age 18 and older, and...
As a widely prescribed anti-diabetic drug, metformin (MTF) has been receiving novel attention for its analgesic potential. In the study of the complex etiology of neuropathic pain (NeP), male and female individuals exhibit quite different responses characterized by higher pain sensitivity and greater NeP incidence in women.
Carotid atherosclerosis is the leading cause of ischemic stroke. Carotid intima–media thickness (cIMT) is a validated surrogate marker of atherosclerosis that is independently associated with the risk for cardiovascular disease. It’s presence in the general population has been well documented, with one study showing that...
A unique collaboration between imaging science, vascular medicine, and rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is transforming the diagnosis and treatment of lipedema, a debilitating, abnormal deposition of fatty tissue that afflicts an estimated 17 million women in the United States.
Expert Opinion
Growing up playing sports, I would hear coaches call some kids “injury prone.” Now that I have my doctorate in physical therapy and work as a youth sports physical therapist, I have a different perspective on what it means to be “injury prone.” It is not just a coincidence, nor are the forces of the universe conspiring to end a child’s potential...
By Jay Blumberg, PT, DPT
Industry News & Updates
Hanger, Inc. announced that Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Vinit Asar will retire from the role of CEO effective May 1, 2023, after more than a decade in the position. In line with a multi-year succession plan, Hanger’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Pete Stoy has been named president and COO, and...
A research team from the Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, has developed high-quality dynamic prosthetic feet, with input from a network of doctors, prosthetists, and orthotists who shared their expertise and interdisciplinary knowledge. The prosthetic feet are made from carbon fiber, making them light...
A team of researchers from the Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science (TUS), and from the Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Japan, have developed a simple and accurate sensor-fusion method for accurate gait analysis. They combined information from a small inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor...
A thermal-imaging tool to screen for chronic wounds, such as venous leg ulcers (VLUs), could enable nurses to identify these hard-to-heal sores during the first assessment at a person’s home. This new method by researchers at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Australia, and Bolton Clarke Research Institute...
The results of a recent clinical trial showed that an implantable device can not only make daily activities more comfortable, but delay the need for a knee replacement. The device involves a piston that anchors to the inner side of the femur and tibia bones with a small plate.
The Last Word
Nutritional interventions for reducing the signs and symptoms of exercise-induced muscle damage and accelerate recovery in athletes: current knowledge, practical application and future perspectives..
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