EFFECTIVE EVIDENCE-BASED TREATMENT FOR BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA

In normal day-to-day life we constantly assume meaning of each other’s language for ease and efficiency sake. . For example, when your partner says “honey please switch of the light”, it would be odd to reply “yes but darling, what do you mean by ‘switch‘ or ‘light’”?🧐 . However, when working with people in pain, we cannot afford to assume that they hold the same meaning as us of the common terms, words and phrases we use to describe/explain the facets associated with back pain. . We should be aware of the multiple interpretations of language and the emotional impacts that words can have for different people. . There is not a one size fits all script that carries universal meaning for all. One person may interpret the term ‘degeneration’ quite differently to another and we should be sensitive to this fact, and be prepared to explore patients meanings, interpretations and beliefs and tailor our language in accordance with these. . Genuine quote from a study participant with LBP from the paper below 👇🏻 . Thomson, O.P. and Collyer, K., 2017. ‘Talking a different language’: a qualitative study of chronic low back pain patients' interpretation of the language used by student osteopaths. International Journal of Osteopathic Medicine, 24, pp.3-11. . Check out my Words Matter workshops on Eventbrite- providing evidence based and practical strategies to utilise language to optimise the recovery of patients with back pain. . London with @physioedmedical Dubai with @emiratesosteopathicsociety Portugal with @osteo_form Melbourne with @balanceosteopathy . #physiotherapy #phsyiotherapist #osteopathy #osteopath #spondylosis #scoliosis #arthritis #chiropractor #wordsmatter #lowbackpain #backpain #cpd #physiotherapyindubai #chiropracticdubai ...

People experiencing back pain often have misconceptions, misrepresentations and inaccurate beliefs about their back. . Health professionals have a pivotal role in shaping patients’ beliefs, and we’re centrally places to construct helpful 👍🏼 or unhelpful 👎🏼representations of the back through the words, language, phrases and metaphors we use during our interaction. . Like any clinical skill (eg manual therapy technique, examining cranial nerves or a cardiac exam), it takes practice. . This can be challenging, when much of undergraduate training tends to focus on the ‘hard technical’ skills and less on the ‘softer inter-personal’ skills. 🤝 . A good place to start is just having a critical awareness of the language that we do use to describe all the elements around back pain; and that this language will have emotional, psychological and behavioural CONSEQUENCES which can profoundly impact recovery. . If you’d like to learn more, then check out my Words Matter workshops in London (with @physioedmedical), Lisbon (with @osteo_form ) and Melbourne (with @balanceosteopathy). . Search ‘Words Matter’ in Eventbrite or see link in my bio. . Quote from: Darlow et al., (2015) Easy to harm, hard to heal: patient views about the back. Spine, 40(11), pp.842-850. . #wordsmatter #manualtherapy #physiotherapy #osteopathy #chiropractic #chiropractor #physiotherapist #physicaltherapist #osteopath #osteopathyworks #evidencebasedpractice #cpd ...

*CPD for manual & musculoskeletal therapists* . Saying the right things, at the right time in the right way to patients with back pain can have a profound impact on their recovery. . It can be a real challenge to communicate to patients the evidence for back pain, it’s causes and effective treatments in a meaningful and biopsychosocial way. . This can made more challenging when patients’ (and practitioners’) expectations and beliefs of back pain are often structurally and biomechanically orientated. . If you’ve struggled to use the latest evidence and biopsychosocial model to shape your explanations and communication with patients with back pain, then check out my Words Matter CPD. . This workshop will review the evidence around back pain and offer practical strategies to communicate diagnosis, examination and imaging findings in a way that empowers, reassures, facilitates physical activity and recovery from back pain. . Search ‘Words Matter’ in eventbrite or see bio for more info. . #backpain #evidencebasedpractice #physiotherapist #osteopath #chiropractor #cpd #osteopathyworks #eventbrite #biopsychosocial #sciatica #manualtherapist ...

Applying or teaching outdated, implausible, bio-centred, un-evidenced theories and models comes at a cost. . You often hear (especially in manual therapy education) justifications for this in forms such as “I known model X is untrue but it’s a good way to start”, or “teaching model Y gives students the opportunity to develop and explore their own approaches” or “despite model Z being incorrect it’s part of our professional history and identity”. . What is common amongst the above justifications is the ASSUMPTION that applying such ideas to practice, while may not be entirely effective, doesn’t carry any risk of HARM. A zero-sum game. . However, using such inadequate models in practice IS harmful in the following ways: . ❌ They focus our gaze onto areas which are shown to be less important in patients’ recovery. . ❌ The patho-biomechanical language tied to these models, when used with patients can create an unhelpful framework of their pain and disability. . ❌ We seems time developing skills which support the implementation of these models (eg palpating, movement/posture analysis, manual techniques). We fail to develop other skills (eg communication, relational understanding, listening). . ❌ They perpetuate, spread and keep alive outdated beliefs 🦠 . So why use them⁉️ . Primum non nocere - "first, do no harm” . Catch the Words Matter sessions: . 🇬🇧 October in London with @physioedmedical . 🇦🇪 October in Dubai with @emiratesosteopathicsociety . 🇵🇹 November in Portugal with @osteo_form . 🇦🇺 December in Melbourne with @balanceosteopathy . #wordsmatter #manualtherapy #osteopath #physiotherapist #chiropractor #biopsychosocial #osteopatiaportugal #chiropracticdubai #physiotherapydubai #osteopathydubai #lowbackpain #evidencebasedpractice ...

Saying the right things, at the right time in the right way to people with back pain can have a profound impact on their recovery. . It can be a real challenge to communicate to patients explanations and information around back pain (which the evidence advocates a non-specific biopsychosocial view) as this can often clash with peoples’ expectations and beliefs of back pain (which are often structurally and biomechanically orientated). . Changing peoples beliefs and perceptions doesn’t happen in an instant. It’s often a case of “slowly slowly catchy monkey 🐒”. Meaning, that over time, in a well-developed trustful therapeutic relationship, beliefs and experiences can be explored, discussed, tested and re-framed. . If you’ve struggled to use the latest evidence and biopsychosocial model to shape your explanations and communication with patients with back pain, then check out my Words Matter CPD. . This workshop review the evidence around back pain and offered practical strategies to communicate diagnosis, examination and imaging findings in a way that empowers, reassures and facilitates physical activity and recovery from back pain. . Swipe across to find out more about the Words Matter seminars this autumn at @physioedmedical. . #backpain #osteopath #chiropractor #physiotherapist #cpd #evidencebasedpractice #manualtherapy #msk #biopsychosocial ...