Newsletter for March-April 2007

ALL ACCESS PATIENT OF THE QUARTER:

 

T

o Carl Johnson, "retirement doesn't mean "idle".  A former firefighter, he spends the warmer parts of the year operating his landscaping business.  He is also a passionate ice hockey player.  In Decmeber of last year, Carl underwent bilateral total knee surgery performed by Dr. Russell Donnelly, who Carl describes as "a genius."  And while the surgery went very well, Carl's immediate post-surgical inpatient rehab did not.  He called us from his rehab hospital bed screaming "GET ME OUT OF HERE!!"  Carl chose All-Access Physical Therapy, Inc. for his outpatient rehabilitation for two reasons: he was familiar with our , and one the owners, Steve Messineo, PT, DPT happens to be Carl's next door neighbor.  So the pressure was certainly on to get Carl better - fast.

 

Carl had three goals for his rehabilitation.  He wanted to continue with his landscaping business, which had become increasingly more difficult due to his previously arthritic knees.  He wanted to return to the ice, at the least to be able to skate around with his friends again, and at best to play in a game.  Finally, he wanted to be able to march with is fellow firefighters in St. Patrick's Day celebration parades in both Worcester and Boston this month. 

 

Carl made excellent progress with our phyiscal therapy care, as you can see by the pictures shown above and below.  He was recently discharged to his home exercise program.  Prior to discharge, Carl reported he was able to skate for thirty minutes, twice a week without knee pain or instability.  He was also preparing to participate in both Worcester and Boston St. Patrick's Day Parades because his leg strength and endurance was reportedly much better than it was prior to surgery.  Carl anticipates no problems returning to his landscaping business later this spring.  In fact, he was so happy with his progress that during two recent snowstorms, he took his snow blower and cleared Steve's driveway while Steve was at work!! Now that's the kind of recovery we like to see in our patients.

 

Carl Working with our New TRX Training System Described Below!!

 In Other News.......................

Strap In for Better Strength: The TRX System Arrives at All Access!!!

 

ere at All-Access, we are constantly on the lookout for new equipment to challenge our patients and improve our rehabilitation outcomes.  Our latest find may be the simplest design yet - the TRX (Total Resistance Exercise) suspension system.  It is deceptively simple, consisting of two nylon straps with hand and foot handles, and an anchor that can be attached to any strudy weight-bearing base.  (Now why didn't we think of that?)  This versatile system was invented by a former Navy Seal, whose goal was to facilitate a wide array of body weight exercises that can be done practically anywhere. 

 

 

Don't let the military roots of this equipment intimidate you - the beauty of this design is that the difficulty of an exercise is adjusted simply by changing the angle of the body position with respect to the anchor.  And since it is all body weight resistance, it's a much safer and functional method for strength training.  The natural incorporation of core training with most TRX exercises contributes to its versatility as a therapy tool.  Since the body is unsupported, the patient must maintain good spinal alignment via core stabilization, in order to properly complete the exercises, which our therapists monitor closely.

 

The TRX is currently being used in the US military and in the NFL, and is gradually making its way into fitness centers across the country. At All Access, it is a great new way to challenge both our patient athletes and our general population, who all need increased core stability and balanced muscle strength to achieve their optimal levels of performance.

 

          Visit www.fitnessanywhere.com for more information and as always, feel free to stop by the clinic to see it in action!!

Suggestions Welcome

If you would like to see information about our treatment approach or strategies for specific diagnoses in an upcoming newsletter, please forward your suggestions to smessineo@allaccesspt.com. We will to provide the information you request in the next newsletter. If we cannot immediately accommodate your request, (first come first serve to keep the newsletter short) we will send the information to you directly in a separate information packet.