McKenzie Method & self treatment guides

A reflective piece on the self-treatment guides created by the late Robin McKenzie. A true pioneer and leader in our profession who was passionate about the treatment of musculoskeletal pain disorders. His work in renown world wide for ‘repeated movements’ and ‘directional preferences’ commonly known as the McKenzie Method of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy. His wisdom and pearls from years of patient management have been distilled into self-treatment guides. This blog reviews five of his books involving self-treatment of the neck, back, shoulder, hip and knee.

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Contralateral Knee Extension - a New Advance in Slump Test

This week we discuss new information about the normal response of painfree subjects during the slump test. Shacklock and his team (2016) have been studying the impact on contralateral knee extension and the resulting movement of the lumbar neural tissues during the slump test. Insightful and enlightening results!

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Spinal degenerative changes are a natural part of ageing

Spending time deciphering and interpreting the meaning of MRI and CT scans for our patients is a difficult task. How do we know what is normal and what is related to pathology? This blog explores a recent systematic review that provides evidence about the prevalence of normal age-related changes on spinal imaging of the lumbar spine and MRI changes in the cervical spine .

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Flexion relaxation response & low back pain

The flexion relaxation response is a phenomenon where the lumbar erector spinae muscles become silent at the end of lumbar flexion, and is an important part of being able to achieve full range. This blog explores the FRR and offers simple and easy treatment strategies for patients with low back pain. 

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Seronegative spondyloarthropathies & inflammatory low back pain - Part 2

Part 2 reviews the definition and diagnosis of seronegative spondyloarthropathies and inflammatory low back pain. It then continues to explore aspects of assessment, treatment and medical imaging more deeply. What drug therapies are involved? What is the gold standard for medical imaging? How should we adjust our treatments for this spectrum of low back pain disorders? All are valid questions to consider. 

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Seronegative spondyloarthropathies & inflammatory low back pain - Part 1

Spondyloarthropathies are a group of related, but phenotypically distinct inflammatory disorders, including ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, reactive arthritis, enteropathic arthritis (also known as irritable bowel disease), and undifferentiated arthritis. One of the main clinical features of each of these conditions is inflammatory low back pain. This 2-part blog discusses the difference between the seronegative spondyloarthropathies and what features are indicative of inflammatory low back pain. 

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