Physicourses EIM

Introduction to the Tactical Athlete by EIM

This course will serve as a foundational introduction, or 20,000-foot view, to theworld of the tactical athlete, focused rehabilitation and return to duty/injury screening. Each section will have certain deep dives into a topic area that serves to increase knowledge, exposure, and interest.

FREE COURSE- Pain Neuroscience, What's the Buzz About by EIM

Treating Cervical Radiculopathy: An Evidence-Based Update by EIM

Neuropathic pain is one of the most challenging clinical conditions to treat both pharmacologically and non-pharmacologically. In physical therapy, the most common neuropathic condition encountered is radiculopathy, including cervical radiculopathy. Clinical practice guidelines, using the latest evidence is used to provide clinicians with guidelines to treat various conditions, including cervical radiculopathy. This presentation, using the most recent practice guideline and evidence will systematically showcase and discuss the treatments in physical therapy that has shown benefit for patients attending physical therapy. From a neurophysiological perspective, treatments should aim to optimize space for the neuromeningeal structures; movement of the nervous system and adequate blood flow. Various physical therapy treatments are able to restore these properties and current evidence supports non-pharmacological, conservative approaches to cervical radiculopathy. Treatments from the guidelines include various forms of exercise, spinal mobilization and manipulation, traction, neural mobilization and more.

Pain Neuroscience Education 1.5 Hour: Teaching People About Pain by EIM

Pain is complex and new paradigms of pain, i.e., neuromatrix, nerve sensitivity, endocrine and immune responses to pain and neuroplasticity has opened various exciting nonpharmacological options in the treatment of pain. One such approach is altering what patients think and believe about their pain. It is well established that patients often have faulty beliefs regarding pain, which in turn may increase fear, catastrophization, pain and disability. The paradox is that patients are interested in pain; especially how pain works. Growing evidence supports that teaching patients more about the neurophysiology and biology of pain allows for decreased pain, increased movement and function, various decreased psychometric measurements, and higher compliance with therapy. This lecture, based on the latest neuroscience view of pain, aims to help healthcare providers update their knowledge of pain. Furthermore, the lecture will expose healthcare providers to a newly designed pain neuroscience education language used in various research projects and clinical practice with the aim to help patients achieve success. This session is a must for all healthcare providers dealing with people.in pain.

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome by EIM

With the advent of neuroscience exploring issues associated with neuroplasticity, it has become increasingly clear that in a certain patient population, physical touch and movement, essential for recovery, could actually pose a threat. It has been suggested that the pinnacle of this clinical scenario occur in complex regional syndrome (CRPS), or the previously named reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD). With persistent input to the central nervous system and brain, various long-lasting changes occur including cell death, change in brain maps of the body, neurotransmitters, receptors and various pathways associated with pain. These changes manifest themselves with clinical issues such as neglect, allodynia, hyperalgesia, mirror pains, spreading pain, widespread sensitization and problems with laterality recognition. Physical testing of patients with pathological changes in their mapping will include two-point discrimination, pressure-pain threshold testing, nerve palpation, localization, graphesthesia, neurodynamics, laterality and mapping of body parts. The same neuroplastic events associated with pain, however, produce unique avenues to treat patients often too sensitive for physical movement. The brains perception of threat can be altered with cognitions (pain neuroscience education), but also via other senses, directly aiming at the faulty mapping of the brain in pain. Treatments discussed will include graded motor imagery, sensory discrimination, mirror therapy, graphe...

Manual Therapy of the Nervous System II by EIM

It has been stated that peripheral neuropathic pain may be one of the most challenging pain conditions seen in clinical practice, let alone suffered by a patient. In recent years there has been an explosion in the research associated with peripheral neuropathic pain. This presentation will for the most part focus on the latest thoughts associated with peripheral neuropathic pain including altered ion channel expression, double crush, the altered blood supply to the nervous system, retrograde depolarization of axons, the dorsal root ganglion, and pathways into central sensitization. Modern pain science has viewed peripheral neuropathic pain from a pharmacological perspective; however, an understanding of the latest science warrants a movement and cognitive-based approach along with pharmacology to help ease the pain experience. Upon developing a greater understanding of neuropathic pain, this course will help clinicians categorize pain mechanisms to further drive physical examinations, clinical reasoning and treatments. In light of the growing evidence for the use of neurodynamics as a test and treatment, the latest evidence for neurodynamics will be discussed. This course will also feature an important clinical how to of teaching patients about their pain, pain neuroscience education, which has shown to ease pain, decrease disability, and improve neurodynamic tests. Finally, the presentation asks clinicians to step back and view neurodynamics and peripheral neuropathic pain f...

Graded Motor Imagery by EIM

With the advent of neuroscience exploring issues associate with neuroplasticity, it has become increasingly clear that in a certain patient population, physical touch and movement, essential for recovery, could actually pose a threat. This includes conditions such as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) (old RSD), phantom limb pain, peripheral neuropathy, spinal cord injuries and more. With persistent input to the central nervous system and brain, various long-lasting changes occur including cell death, change in brain maps of the body, neurotransmitters, receptors and various pathways associated with pain. These changes manifest themselves with clinical issues such as neglect, allodynia, hyperalgesia, mirror pains, spreading pain, widespread sensitization and problems with laterality recognition. Physical testing of patients with pathological changes in their mapping will include two-point discrimination, pressure-pain threshold testing, nerve palpation, localization, graphesthesia, neuro- dynamics, laterality and mapping of body parts. The same neuroplastic events associated with pain, however, produce unique avenues to treat patients often too sensitive for physical movement. The brains perception of threat can be altered with cognitions (therapeutic neuroscience education), but also via other senses, directly aiming at the faulty mapping of the brain in pain. Treatments discussed, demonstrated and practiced will include graded motor imagery, sensory discrimination, mirro...

I Hurt Because I’m Old: Really? by EIM

Ever heard: I hurt because I have arthritis! Is it true? This idea that the health (and age) of our tissues is correlated to pain is fundamentally flawed. If this was the case, then only older patients should hurt and younger patients should not hurt! This misbelief and self-limiting perception powerfully impact the experience of pain and outlook for older adults. As the United States population ages, and physical therapy take its rightful place in the assessment and treatment of older adults, we must reevaluate our pain paradigms in the elderly. It is overwhelmingly shown that older patients do hurt, but not because they are old, but because they stop moving. Fear-avoidance and pain catastrophizing, powerfully driven by these misbeliefs regarding aging powerfully limits movement. Recent pain neuroscience education (PNE) research has shown that normalizing pain beliefs, including the role of aging and pain, powerfully influences movement, pain and disability even in older adults. In this lecture we will explore the myth of aging and pain, evolution and evidence for PNE and showcase how various ready-to-use metaphors can help older adults understand pain better and facilitate much-needed movement.

Pain Neuroscience Education 4 Hours: Teaching People About Pain by EIM

Pain is complex and new paradigms of pain, i.e., neuromatrix, nerve sensitivity, endocrine and immune responses to pain and neuroplasticity has opened various exciting nonpharmacological options in the treatment of pain. One such approach is altering what patients think and believe about their pain. It is well established that patients often have faulty beliefs regarding pain, which in turn may increase fear, catastrophization, pain and disability. The paradox is that patients are interested in pain; especially how pain works. Growing evidence supports that teaching patients more about the neurophysiology and biology of pain allows for decreased pain, increased movement and function, various decreased psychometric measurements, and higher compliance with therapy. This lecture, based on the latest neuroscience view of pain, aims to help healthcare providers update their knowledge of pain. Furthermore, the lecture will expose healthcare providers to a newly designed pain neuroscience education language used in various research projects and clinical practice with the aim to help patients achieve success. This session is a must for all healthcare providers dealing with people.in pain.

The Neuroscience of pain, the brain, athletes and sports performance by EIM

Pain is common in athletes. Most therapeutic interventions focus on structural tissue-based issues in terms of tests and treatment. Pain, however, is far more complex. It is now well understood that the brain is extremely busy during a pain experience the same brain that controlssports performance. This lecture will update attendees on the latest neuroscience of pain, with an emphasis on structural and functional changes in the brain during a pain experience. Then, taking the knowledge of brain activation during a pain experience into consideration, various aspects of sports performance will be analyzed based on compelling new research: The brain activation between a novice and professional athlete is vastly different and how does pain impact this? Can the brain multitask? A brain processing pain puts increase demand on the energy supply of the brain; motor learning is strengthened during sleep; modulating vision enhances sports performance; what is optimal arousal for the brain? This session is a MUST for anyone interested in the advances in sports performance and the brain. This session will also provide attendees evidence-based strategies to influence the brain in immediate take-home tests and treatments including laterality training, sensory discrimination, neuroscience education, graded motor imagery, mirror therapy, etc.