PT Pro Talk

“We have no business treating pain If we don't treat both the sensory and emotional components .” Carolyn Vandyken Our guest is Carolyn Vandyken PT, Cert. MDT.  Carolyn is a physiotherapist, educator, researcher and advocate in the areas of low back pain, pelvic health and pain science.  She became an MDT credentialled therapist in 1999. Carolyn holds a CBT certificate from Wilfred University, and has been practicing in the field of pelvic health for the past 25 years.  She has been practicing as a physiotherapist for 39 years teaching post-graduate pelvic health courses that are steeped in pain science. Carolyn won the Medal of Distinction from the Canadian Physiotherapy Association in 2021, the distinguished Education Award from the OPA in 2015 and the YWCA Women of Distinction Award in 2004.  Carolyn presents extensively at international conferences and has co-authored multiple chapters and papers on central pain mechanisms and pelvic pain.  She is actively involved in research with Dr. Sinead Dufour (McMaster University, Canada) and Dr. Judith Thompson (Curtin University, Australia) and has published multiple studies on the connection between low back pain and pelvic floor dysfunction. Carolyn co-owns a multi-disciplinary teaching company called Reframe Rehab and is engaged in breaking down the barriers internationally between pelvic health, orthopaedics and pain science. Carolyn practices locally in the areas of pelvic health and chronic pain at Physio Works Muskoka in Huntsville, Ontario with her daughter/physiotherapist, Brittany Vandyken.

“Mechanical pain and mechanical concepts don't exist in the practice of medicine.” Dr. Vikas Agarwal Our guest is Dr. Vikas Agarwal MD, Cert. MDT, FACP. Dr. Vikas is an Internal Medicine physician, also certified in the McKenzie Method of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (MDT). He is the first Internal Medicine physician to integrate mechanical concepts of the McKenzie Method into his primary care practice. Dr. Agarwal is a 1994 graduate of King George's Medical College (KGMC) in Lucknow, India. Following four and a half years of medical school, he spent six years as an Internal Medicine Resident, three with All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS, New Delhi, 1995-1997), and three with the University of Missouri - Kansas City (UMKC, 1998-2001). Dr. Agarwal is Certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine (2001/2011) and became Certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy in 2015. He is a two-time recipient of the Mosaic Life Care Distinguished Physician Recognition Award (2012 & 2014). Dr. Agarwal's goal is to create awareness of the mechanical pain and mechanical causes resulting in many of the human being's ailment. Dr. Agarwal specializes in managing patients with acute and chronic pain at Mosaic Life Care in Saint Joseph, MO where he also serves as a Physician Collaborator for Nurse Practitioners.

“The heart of running injuries is tissue loading.” Michael O'Hearn Our guest is Michael O'Hearn, PT, MHS, OCS, FAAOMPT. Michael received his Masters of Health Science from the University of Indianapolis ('99), his Graduate Diploma in Physiotherapy from the University of Sydney in Australia ('82) and his Bachelor of Science from the University of New South Wales in Australia ('81). Michael is currently an adjunct clinical instructor at the University of Illinois at Chicago Fellowship Program in Orthpaedic Manual Therapy teaching courses in Orthopedic Manual Therapy and Clinical Mentorship. Michael has had a multitude of articles published in Journal of Manual and Manipulative Therapy and the Journal of Orthopedic Sports Physical Therapy, among other publications. In addition, he was at three MAPS Symposiums on clinical reasoning and the Maitland approach to running injuries. Michael has been awarded the Michigan Physical Therapy Association Outstanding Clinical Instructor Award and the Andrews University Physical Therapy Program Outstanding Teacher Award. Today, he is the Chief of Physical Therapy at Lakeland HealthCare in St. Joseph, MI, in addition to being a senior MAPS instructor. Michael has run over 30 marathons including 13 Boston marathons. He is also a 3-time Ironman triathlon finisher. With his vast experience and education, Michael fully understands the demanding environment facing all physical therapists today

“You should treat the movement to get rid of the symptoms rather than treating the symptoms to be able to move.” Dr. Shirley Sahrmann Our guest Dr. Shirley Sahrmann, PT, PhD, FAPTA. Dr. Sahrmann is a Professor Emerita of Physical Therapy at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri with over 60 years of experience.  She received her bachelor's degree in Physical Therapy, masters and doctorate degrees in Neurobiology from Washington University.  She is a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association and is a recipient of the Association's Marion Williams Research Award, the Lucy Blair Service Award, and the Kendall Practice award, the Inaugural John H.P. Maley Lecture and Mary McMillan Lecture awards.  Dr. Sahrmann has received Washington University's Distinguished Faculty Award, The Distinguished Alumni Award, the School of Medicine's inaugural Distinguished Clinician Award and an honorary doctorate from the University of Indianapolis. She has also received the Bowling-Erhard Orthopedic Clinical Practice Award from the Orthopaedic Section of the APTA.  She has served on the APTA Board of Directors and as president of the Missouri Chapter. In addition to her numerous national and international presentations, Dr. Sahrmann has been a keynote speaker at the World Confederation of Physical Therapy, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, Japan, and Danish national congresses. Dr. Sahrmann's research interests are in the development and validation of classification schemes for movement impairment syndromes and in interventions for these syndromes.  Her books, Diagnosis and Treatment of Movement Impairment Syndromes and Movement System Impairment Syndromes of the Cervical and Thoracic Spines and the Extremities, describe the syndromes and methods of treatment.

“Running a business has become distinctly harder since the pandemic.” Dr. Karena Wu Our guest Dr. Karena Wu is Owner and Clinical Director of ActiveCare Physical Therapy® in NYC and Mumbai. s been practicing physical therapy for over 24 years in New York City. Dr. Wu graduated with a Masters Degree in Physical Therapy from the Program In Physical Therapy at Columbia University and received her Clinical Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Temple University. She has advanced training in manual therapies, specifically in the Maitland Australian Approach and Myofascial Release. She is a Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy and a Fellow of the International & American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapists.  Dr. Wu is a Maitland Australian Physiotherapy Seminars (MAPS) Faculty member and a lecturer at NYC's Hunter College Doctorate of Physical Therapy Program. She is also a Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist, Strength and Conditioning Specialist, Graston Technique Specialist and Pilates Instructor. Dr. Wu is a dedicated practitioner who takes a holistic approach to her practice. She has a copyrighted methodology that emphasizes her holistic care philosophy in ‘walking her way toward the injured segment'. Dr. Wu is now Chairman of the NYC Arthritis Foundation Local Leadership board. Dr. Wu is a regular healthcare expert on ABC, CBS, NBC, NY1, PIX11, Fox News, The Doctors and Dr. Oz. She has appeared on Good Morning America and is a regular on The Today Show in NYC. She is the Medical Director for the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP), the premier US professional beach volleyball tournament series in America.

“The psychosocial issues need to be dealt with if you think your mechanical approach is going to have a response.'' - Annie O'Connor Our guest is Annie O'Connor PT, OCS, Cert. MDT. Annie is the founder and CEO of World of Hurt LLC, a company dedicated to the teaching, research, consulting, and clinical practice of the Pain Mechanism Classification System. Annie is a physical therapist with over 30 years of experience. She is also a sought-after speaker and teacher nationally and internationally on musculoskeletal pain mechanism classification, neurodynamic evaluation and treatment, mechanical diagnosis and therapy of spine and extremities, kinetic chain evaluation, functional manual therapy and exercise prescription. She was instrumental in establishing the Pain Mechanism Classification System approach for musculoskeletal pain and neurological spasticity at the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab formerly known as the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.  She co-authored the 2015 book 'A World of Hurt: A Guide to Classifying Pain', along with other book chapters, and has published research promoting a paradigm shift in pain management. She is a member of APTA orthopedic and canine section, the North American Spine Society exercise committee, and McKenzie Institute. Annie sits on the Advisory Board for Greentree Mind Company, Specialty Panel Member for Physical Therapy with AIM Specialty Healthcare Company, and Research and Advisory Board for My Abilities a Health Care data analytics company.

"If you get stuck in one model, there's a large proportion of patients you're just not going to be able to treat. " Dr. Darren Earnshaw Our guest is Dr. Darren Earnshaw, PT, MMT, Cert. MDT, COMT, FAAOMPT. Darren earned his Bachelor's degree in Physiotherapy from Curtin University in 1992, followed by a Master's degree in Manipulative Physiotherapy from Curtin University in 1996. In 2017, he completed a Fellowship in Movement Science from Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Earnshaw serves as a Senior Faculty Advisor for the MAPS Orthopedic Manual Therapy Fellowship Program, is a COMT/Fellowship examiner, and holds the position of Clinical Manager at an outpatient Physical Therapy facility. He is certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy by the McKenzie Institute since 2001 and served as an adjunct Professor for the University of Illinois's Manual Therapy Fellowship Program from 2005 to 2018. He obtained his transitional Doctorate in 2022.

"You cannot have full osteokinematic or physiological movement unless you have full arthrokinematic or accessory movement." Dr. Chris Showalter  Our guest is Dr. Chris Showalter the Co-Owner and Clinical Director of MAPS, Program Director of the MAPS Orthopedic Manual Therapy Fellowship Program, Senior MAPS Course Instructor, and Senior Faculty Advisor. Board Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS), Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Therapists (FAAOMPT). He was appointed Chair of the Accreditation Council on Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy Education (ACOMPTE) which sets the Standards and issues accreditation for U.S. Fellowship programs for the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Therapists (AAOMPT) in compliance with both US and International Standards per the International Federation of Orthopedic Manipulative Physical Therapists (IFOMPT). Chris has also served as the US Representative to IFOMPT (2000-2009), and on the RIG Development Task Force (2015-2020) Since 1990 Chris has been teaching skilled orthopedic manual therapy through MAPS in the USA and internationally including: Brazil, Canada, China, India, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Taiwan, and the UK. He has authored 28 Peer-reviewed papers, 2 Textbook Chapters, and 70 Research Commentaries and has been an invited Keynote Speaker for many US and International physical therapy professional conferences. His clinical interests include: Clinical Reasoning, Cervicogenic Headaches, and Bio-Psycho-Social effects of manual therapy.

Ep. 135 - Pelvic Health for Orthopedic Therapists with Dr. Jennifer Stone   ‘'A study showed that 98% of individuals (females) with chronic low back pain had at least one symptom of pelvic floor dysfunction.'' Dr. Jennifer Stone