All Posts tagged Physical Therapy

Just a reminder as coronavirus cases rise in Oregon.

Nick Rinard Physical Therapy has continued SAFETY MEASURES and are ALWAYS here for you!

Our staff is fully vaccinated and continues to follow social distancing, sanitation protocols and wear masks.

New patients and established patients will find every visit very valuable and should not delay care due to increases in Coronavirus cases.

We are here to diagnose, educate, offer tools, listen to concerns, and meet all safety needs of every patient.

May all our patients stay safe, healthy and have a quick recovery should they test positive for Coronavirus this summer.

Nick Rinard Physical Therapy is here for you.

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The official first day of summer is upon us.

It has been a busy and wonderful spring at Nick Rinard Physical Therapy!

We are excited about getting you pain free from all your injuries so that you can slide into your favorite summer activities!

While a lot of injuries can occur during activities, it’s just as common to injure yourself slouching on the couch with your feet up while you have been waiting for the rain to stop and the sun to shine.

Your seasonal pains could point to a chronic condition that could easily be treated.

With summer just around the corner take care of your aches and pains now before they get worse.

Nick Rinard Physical Therapy is ALWAYS here to help!

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Get your confidence back at Nick Rinard Physical Therapy

“I was recommended to investigate the McKenzie Method for my recover, especially as my pain had greatly increased and did not seem to be improving.

The PT folks I was seeing at that time recommend that I check you all out as practitioners of this method. Although eventually we all concluded that a follow up surgery to replace my disk is necessary.

I have much more confidence that I will be able to live a life pain-free, or much reduced.

At the moment I can stand straighter than before, can drives for a short distance if necessary, and better manage my own pain w/o opioids.”

Brian

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Get your quality of life back!

“I came after severe back pain. I was not able to bend over, walk for extended time, or sit without pain.

Right away I had better results from doing the exercises I was shown then I had ever had with my previous therapist.

I feel like we went at a good pace and throughout my treatment I have been able to increase my overall activity and quality of life.

I have been given the knowledge and tools I need to manage my pain on my own and my back pain has greatly improved!”

Danielle

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The end of year is fast approaching.

We, at Nick Rinard Physical Therapy, hope that everyone had a great holiday.

After Thanksgiving the end of the year seems to go by a little faster than usual.
You have lots to do and you don’t need to do it in pain.


Get your results today!


“Lumbar pain – was a deranged disc.
Katie fixed me right up in a couple of weeks.
And now my range of motion is better than before the injury.
Resuming running / yoga….”
Andrew

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What are you doing to improve yourself in 2018?

‘Tis the season for making resolutions, focusing on self-improvement, and charting the course for the year ahead.  What are you doing to improve yourself in 2018?  One small step that can make a tremendous impact in many areas of your life is simply to establish good self-accountability.  How credible are you?  Many of us are loyal to commitments we make to our friends, family, and coworkers but we may routinely neglect to fulfill our promises to ourselves.  When was the last time you put off a work out, failed to follow through with a diet goal, or simply lost momentum with a good training program?

Creating the discipline of good habits is beneficial to all of us!  Whether you are looking to reboot your home exercise routine or seeking to redeem your diet after an avalanche of holiday feasts – consistency is the key.  Daily diligence defines the difference between crashing through a fad and building a foundation of good habits that can improve your life.  In some areas of life, this need for consistency is obvious, for example: brushing your teeth.  If you wish to have fresh breath for your date on Friday night, is brushing your teeth just once on Tuesday going to cut it?  Nope!  Good oral hygiene requires that twice a day commitment every day of the week.  Other areas of our health will benefit from applying this daily discipline as well.

So, here are 5 easy ways to help build credibility with yourself and to insure you follow through with all of those good intensions.

  • Make an appointment with yourself – Schedule time on your calendar each day, even if it is just 20 minutes, to do your home exercise program. Honor this time the same way you would honor any other medical appointment.
  • Reward yourself when you follow through – Improving your health is its own reward, but you may need other tangible incentives to keep you motivated on your course. Make a barter system with yourself – “For every 10 minutes I spend on this treadmill, I will get 10 minutes of guilt-free Netflix ve
  • Get friends and family onboard – One of my patients found the best way to correct his posture was to recruit his children, “It’s open season, kids – anytime you can catch me slouching, call me on it and I will give you a dollar.”
  • Keep it visible – Put those running shoes in a high visibility area of your home so that you have a visual reminder to gear up and get outside for a jog. Are you using a theraband for your exercise routine? Don’t hide it – hang it in plain sight so that you are prompted to put it to good use!
  • Teach what you’ve learned – If you have mastered a new exercise or healthy recipe, share it! Pay it forward and reap the benefit of better understanding through teaching. You know you have truly mastered a technique when you can teach it effectively to someone else.

So let me know – what do you do to encourage yourself to follow through with your commitments to yourself?  Have you tried any of these suggestions before?  Do you have new ideas you’d like to share with us? Let’s support each other in making 2018 a year of abundant good health!

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Total Knee Replacement (TKA) and the Importance of Physical Therapy by Nick Rinard

At Nick Rinard Physical Therapy a lot of patients come to see us with knee pain and/or knee arthritis, both before and after various knee surgeries, including total knee replacement surgeries.

Since 2010, knee replacements have been the most performed surgery on people over 45 years of age. Knee replacements are performed at the rate of 700,000 per year. Because of this increasing rate, the efficacy of pain relief and improvement of function should be investigated.

100 patients with knee arthritis

A researcher, Soren Thorgaard Skou, has done just that. In his study, he looked at 100 patients with knee arthritis and assigned them to a surgical group or non-surgical group (which received physical therapy, medication and diet education). After one year, 85% percent of the surgical group had significant improvements in pain vs 68% of the physical therapy group. The surgical group and larger gains in their ability to climb stairs and walk. However, the study also showed that the surgical group is at greater risk for complications that the physical therapy group is not. The surgical group is more likely to have blood clots or a manipulation (another procedure performed by the surgeon to increase range of motion). The surgical group had more adverse side effects vs the physical therapy group (24 vs. 6).

Physical therapy is effective

Physical therapy is effective and should be considered a viable option before jumping to surgery. If the first knee replacement can be delayed, this can decrease the necessity for a second surgery (current replacements last 10-15 years).  We urge our patients to remember that we are always here for you before or after surgery.  Nick Rinard Physical Therapy is a phone call away 503-244-6232 !

1/3rd of knee replacements are unnecessary

This, taken into consideration with the study that came out last summer that found nearly 1/3rd of knee replacements are unnecessary, should be considered when deciding to have a knee replacement or a trial of physical therapy to determine effectiveness.

Sources:

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2015/10/21/knee-replacement-brings-less-pain-better-function
Dr. Skou’s report (N Engl J Med. 2015 373;17:1668-9)

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Balance and Aging

It is general knowledge that, as we age, our sensory systems start to decline. This includes sight, smell, temperature regulation and balance mechanisms.  It’s important to have good balance because if it declines, you are at a higher risk for falling.  And falling, results in injuries that can greatly affect your life.

Exercises that Challenge your Balance

What many people don’t know, is that you can work on making your balance stronger, just like you do a muscle: by exercising it!  What physical therapy aims to do, is find exercises that challenge your balance system, so that your body must learn to adapt to certain situations and re-train itself on what to do.

Static and Dynamic Exercises

Physical Therapists can provide both static and dynamic exercises for you, depending on what is most challenging.  Exercises can be very simple and integrated during daily routines- like balancing on one leg while brushing your teeth.

If you are having trouble with your balance, come in to Nick Rinard Physical Therapy and have an assessment by a physical therapist! 503-244-6232

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