March is National Endometriosis Awareness Month. Endometriosis is a condition that occurs when the endometrium grows outside of the uterus in the pelvic and abdominal areas, causing inflammation, pain, and adhesions in the pelvic area. Endometriosis can also cause muscles in the pelvis to tighten, spasm, and thicken as they respond to tension patterns from the condition, causing pelvic floor dysfunction. Pelvic floor therapy can help alleviate pelvic floor symptoms related to endometriosis, reducing endometriosis-related pelvic pain and pelvic floor muscle tightness, minimizing “endo belly” occurrence, addressing urinary and bowel issues, and helping make sex less painful through targeted reconditioning of the pelvic floor muscles.

Joint replacement surgery is a complex surgery that places significant stress on your body and increases your nutritional needs as you heal and recover. Adequate nutrition during recovery from surgery can help to control inflammation, provide the necessary nutrients to rebuild and restore injured tissue, decrease the risk of muscle atrophy, and preserve muscle strength. Eating a high-quality, fiber and antioxidant-rich, anti-inflammatory diet post-surgery can play a pivotal role in your body’s healing process and recovery. Check out our tips for the top nutrients to consume post-joint replacement surgery!

A concussion is a mild traumatic brain injury that can result in disrupted neurological function and cause a wide range of physical, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms. The sport of soccer poses a significant risk for concussions and head injuries. During soccer, the head is at risk of contact with the ground, with soccer goalposts, with the ball, and with other players’ heads, elbows, knees, or feet. Physical therapists can effectively manage concussion injuries through evidence-based treatment and a careful, personalized rehabilitation program.

Prehabilitation has numerous benefits for pre-surgery patients. Prehabilitation is an individualized exercise conditioning program that prepares the body for the stresses of surgery, manages symptoms, and helps restore function in the injured area as much as possible prior to surgery. Prehabilitation, or “prehab,” works on improving a patient’s movement, flexibility, and strength before surgery to set them up for a successful recovery after surgery. Prehab has been shown to shorten recovery time and a patient’s hospital stay, reduce post-surgical pain and inflammation, and increase strength, stamina, and mobility.

Aging can be accompanied by physiological changes in the body that may limit your physical function, strength, balance, and mobility. However, research has shown that physical exercise can prevent age-related decline, delay loss of physical function, and reduce the risk of fall-related injuries. Physical therapy can help slow the aging process through customized and targeted exercise interventions that help seniors maintain and improve strength, function, mobility, balance, and vitality safely.

The Lisfranc joint is a complex joint in the midfoot where the metatarsal bones connect to the rest of the foot, providing stability to the foot, supporting the arch of the foot, and allowing you to walk and run with ease. A Lisfranc injury involves a fracture or dislocation of the metatarsal and tarsal bones of the midfoot or a sprain of the ligaments of the midfoot, leading to significant pain, dysfunction, and difficulty walking or running. Physical therapy after a Lisfranc injury and surgery can help you manage pain and swelling, improve lower extremity mobility and strength, restore normal walking ability, and safely return to activity and sports competition.

Ankle sprains are one of the most common sports injuries that occur when the foot twists beyond its normal range of movement, causing the ankle's ligaments to overstretch or tear. If you do not receive timely and effective treatment after your first ankle sprain, the risk of recurrent ankle sprains and chronic ankle instability is high. It’s essential to work with a physical therapist to address an ankle sprain and restore ankle joint biomechanics, strength, and balance safely before returning to sport or activity.

Frozen shoulder is characterized by structural changes in the shoulder joint, primarily thickening of the tissues of the shoulder joint capsule which “freezes” movement and range of motion in the shoulder. Frozen shoulder can result from diabetes, thyroid disease, Parkinson’s disease, or due to a period of enforced immobility of the shoulder due to trauma to the joint, shoulder surgery, or overuse injuries to the shoulder. Physical therapy is the first line of treatment for frozen shoulder and is highly effective in speeding up the recovery process and regaining shoulder mobility at any stage of the condition.

Heart disease is a systemic cardiovascular disease that can lead to serious cardiac events, such as high blood pressure, heart attack, heart failure, and heart rhythm abnormalities. Regular exercise not only can help prevent the onset and development of cardiovascular disease but also is a critical therapeutic tool to improve outcomes for those with heart disease. Physical therapy can help reduce the risk of developing heart disease and improve the function of those with heart disease through a personalized exercise program to improve aerobic capacity, strength, and endurance safely.

A calf strain involves injury to or tearing of the muscles in the back of your leg below the knee, primarily the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles. Calf strains are common among athletes who perform stop-and-go movements with quick bursts of speed, such as sprinters, football players, and soccer and tennis players. Physical therapy can help reduce pain, restore muscle strength and flexibility, and increase the speed of recovery through a progressive rehabilitation program to prepare the athlete for a safe return to sport.

Thoracic outlet syndrome occurs when the nerves, arteries, or veins that run between your collarbone and the highest, first rib are pinched or compressed. The most common type is neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS), in which weak or tight muscles cause the brachial plexus to be pinched and inflamed, often caused by repetitive overhead activities and heavy lifting. Physical therapy is the first line of treatment for neurogenic TOS, utilizing manual therapy, postural retraining, and targeted strengthening of the scapular muscles to relieve symptoms and improve function.

Swelling is a natural part of the inflammatory process after an injury to help protect the injured area and facilitate healing as the body sends white blood cells and supportive fluids to the injured site to repair and heal. However, prolonged swelling can limit your range of motion and negatively affect your muscular strength. It is important to manage and limit swelling with the help of a physical therapist. Check out our 7 tips to manage swelling after injury!

Mangiarelli Rehabilitation physical therapist Bobby demonstrates several gait training exercises to address gait dysfunction after a lower extremity knee injury. Gait dysfunction refers to changes in your normal walking pattern, often related to a lower extremity injury, disease, or underlying medical condition. Physical therapists are experts at addressing the root cause of your gait dysfunction and designing customized treatments to restore your gait and improve your function.

Chronic knee pain, which affects one in four Americans, can be debilitating and limit your function and mobility. Chronic knee pain involves ongoing pain, swelling, and sensitivity in the knee that lasts more than 4-6 months and can result from a traumatic injury that healed incorrectly or from medical conditions like osteoarthritis. Physical therapy can help you manage chronic knee pain long-term without the need for surgery to reduce pain and improve your mobility and function.

Boxing is a high-impact sport requiring full-body movement, coordination, agility, endurance, and power, combining upper-body power punching with lower-body footwork. Due to the high intensity of the sport, upper body injuries are common, including concussions, wrist and elbow strains, boxer’s fracture, or shoulder rotator cuff or labrum tears. Physical therapists can help boxers prevent injury through a customized strength and conditioning program and recover from and return to the boxing ring safely after injury.

Spondylolysis is a lumbar stress fracture in the pars interarticularis, the bony bridge that connects the upper and lower facet joints of the vertebrae. Spondylolysis is a common cause of low back pain in adolescent athletes, caused by repetitive loading, backward bending, and twisting of the lower back. Physical therapy can successfully manage spondylolysis in adolescent athletes, helping to reduce pain, improve strength and function in the low back, and safely return athletes to sports competition.

Snowboarding is an intense winter sport requiring excellent balance, coordination, and agility while descending packed snow-covered slopes at high speed. Due to the high speeds and momentum gained when snowboarding, injuries due to falling are common and most often involve injury to the upper body, such as wrist fractures, separated shoulders, ligament and tendon tears in the shoulder, and concussions. A physical therapist can help a snowboarder not only recover from injury and safely return to the slopes but also prepare for the snowboarding season through a targeted strength and conditioning program.

Meniscus tears are one of the most common sports injuries and most frequent knee injuries. The meniscus can tear during any movement that puts excessive pressure on the knee or pushes the meniscus past its normal rotational range of motion, such as when twisting, squatting, or making quick positional changes. Physical therapy can help those experiencing meniscus tears facilitate optimal healing, restore full functionality, and achieve complete recovery through targeted strengthening and extensive rehabilitation should surgery be necessary, for a safe return to sport and activity.

Check out our 8 tips to manage arthritis this winter. Arthritis is a progressive chronic condition that involves inflammation, swelling, pain, and stiffness in one or more joints and is the leading cause of joint pain in the United States. Winter can exacerbate arthritic pain and stiffness due to the colder temperatures, precipitation, and decreased barometric pressure. Maintaining a regular exercise routine in winter is a key component of managing your arthritis, increasing your mobility, and decreasing your pain and stiffness.

Posterior tibial tendon dysfunction (PTDD) is one of the most common problems of the foot and ankle that occurs when the posterior tibial tendon is inflamed or torn, leading to an acquired flat foot. PTDD most often results from overuse due to repetitive loading on the tendon that causes microtrauma, inflammation, and eventually a tear of the posterior tibial tendon. Physical therapy can restore flexibility and strength in the foot and ankle, alleviate pain, and help patients return to the highest level of function.