It is a day that stands out in infamy for me. The year was 1994. It is a day that changed my life in any number of ways.
The day in question was day one of a four day course in the McKenzie Method. Yes, I will be the first to admit that it sounds a little corny, all this life-changing stuff. But in hindsight, it really isn’t that far from the truth.
On that particular day, I faced a challenge that all clinicians will face. I sat in a room full of my peers while an instructor, through no fault of his own, stood in front of a classroom and challenged every belief I had about my clinical practice patterns and the beliefs I was maintaining about the whole lot.
At the end of the day, it came down to a simple choice.
It is estimated that there are now 40 million (or more, depending on the study) runners in the United States. There are almost 11 million of those runners that are running twice per week or more. In the context of health benefit, the rising numbers are good.
There is a sad reality attached to these numbers as well. The research would indicate that at least 60% of all runners will be injured in any given year, and that 70% of injuries are recurrent. For those who like to do math, that amounts to 24 million injured runners, of which 16.8 million runners will have recurrent problems.
When you start doing the math on running injuries, some frightening economic numbers rise to the surface.
It is now just about impossible to watch a sporting event without seeing the stuff. Reams and reams of bright, colorful tape have now been stretched over countless athletes. The already-colorful London Olympics quickly became the London Technicolor Games.
Kinesio Tape has become an everyday sight since the Beijing Olympics, and it’s perceived impact is spreading rapidly through the general populace. If I didn’t know better, I would say that it could very well be the next greatest thing since sliced bread.
But much like Rod Tidwell in “Jerry Maguire” would say, “show me the science"! This brings me to today’s question: is kinesio taping placebo or panacea?
President Kennedy’s “Man On The Moon” address to Congress on May 25, 1961 probably sounded like a far-fetched idea to many. How could it not? Putting a man on the moon by the end of the decade must have sounded like a crazy idea at best.
But as we all know, the glimmer of an idea that started with the X-15 program in 1959 was made a reality on July 21, 1969 when Neil Armstrong walked on the surface of the moon. As it turns out, Kennedy’s vision had months to spare.
Right now, we have another seemingly far-fetched goal in front of us: health care reform. I think that the powers-that-be would do well to learn some lessons from NASA. Here are nine lessons to consider.
There are those that propose that Mechanical Diagnosis And Therapy – otherwise known as MDT or the McKenzie Method – is somehow an incomplete approach to assessment and treatment, especially when it comes to athletes and sports injuries. I have had clinicians ask me, “What do I do when McKenzie doesn’t work?” I have had clinicians tell me that MDT “leaves some things on the table”. I have had clinicians tell me that “it doesn’t address [insert obscure irrelevant minutiae here]”. Unfortunately, I hear these claims in the sports medicine community on a regular basis.
As one of about 350 clinicians worldwide that have attained the highest level of training in the McKenzie Method, there is no doubt in my mind that MDT is a comprehensive, athlete-centered and exercise-based approach to the care of musculoskeletal injuries in sport. With that said, here are 7 reasons why MDT is the future of sports medicine and what makes it appealing to clinicians, athletes, and coaches alike.
On the heels of a post on gurus, I found myself pondering the question of complexity – a hallmark of gurus.
Many clinicians in health care wittingly (and unwittingly) make clinical scenarios more complex. They add layers of unnecessary complexity for the patient (and for other clinicians). It starts the moment they talk to patients in medical-speak. This is not done because it fosters a better learning experience for the patient. Hey, the more syllables you use, the smarter you sound, right? And if the solution is more complex, it just has to be better, no?
With that said, I ask you – when has added complexity ever made a situation (or solution) any better? We can turn to Albert Einstein – the father of modern physics – to shed some light on the problems of complexity in health care.
Health and health care are chock full of systems and approaches that have both empirical and arbitrary foundations. They are typically based on the beliefs and anecdotes of a “guru”. With any guru comes a flock of disciples that espouse the earth-shattering wisdom of their guru.
Something oftentimes gets a little confused in the process: the guru and their methods become more important than the patients themselves.
Well, I would suggest one important reminder today: It’s not about you, oh mighty guru.
Health and health care are all about the patient. With that said, these domains don’t need any more gurus. There are more than enough snake oil salesman to go around. What we need are true science-based medicine and patient-focused approaches that implement competent self care strategies, and not just more lip service.
Up to 60% of runners will sustain an injury within any given year. Poor running mechanics, in conjunction with poor, ineffective and outdated training methods, can pose a significant injury risk. "RunSmart" was written to address these issues in the running community.
"Running Injuries: Etiology And Recovery- Based Treatment" (co-author Bridget Clark, PT) appears in the third edition and fourth editions of "Clinical Orthopaedic Rehabilitation: A Team Approach" by Charles Giangarra, MD and Robert C. Manske, PT.
Allan Besselink, PT, DPT, Ph.D., Dip.MDT has a unique voice in the world of sports, education, and health care. Read more about Allan here.
Top 5 finalist in three categories: "Best Overall Blog", "Best PT Blog" and "Best Advocacy Blog".
PO Box 26161
Austin, TX 78755
512-222-6263
