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Physical Therapy at TexPTS Is Best For Musculoskeletal Pain, Not Surgery Or Drugs

In April 2011, the Wall Street Journal reports that “Joint-replacement patients these days are younger and more active than ever before.” The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that from 1997 to 2005, prescriptions for back pain increased by 171%. Texas Physical Therapy Specialists (TexPTS) are experts at decreasing pain, reducing the need prescription drugs, and preventing costly and painful surgery.

(San Antonio, TX – May 12, 2011)

In April 2011, the Wall Street Journal reports that “Joint-replacement patients these days are younger and more active than ever before.” The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that from 1997 to 2005, prescriptions for back pain increased by 171%. At the same time, the rate of good patient outcomes fell. Texas Physical Therapy Specialists (TexPTS) are experts at decreasing pain, reducing the need forprescription drugs, and preventing costly and painful surgery.

Research suggests that 4 out of every 5 people have had lower back pain at in some point. In February 2010 the Archives of Internal Medicine reported that the direct costs of treatment for low back pain in the United States are over $50 billion a year. This is more than half the amount spent yearly on cancer treatment.

“A patient’s basic intervention choices when suffering from low back pain, or any musculoskeletal condition, are drugs, surgery, or us,” explains Rob Wainner, a physical therapy professor at Texas State University, leading musculoskeletal researcher, and therapist/owner at TexPTS. “Surgery cases and prescriptions are on the rise, where the number of back pain patients has not significantly increased. Patients need to understand that they have options for treatment and that surgery and drugs are not a silver bullet.”

In April 2011, the Wall Street Journal reports that “Joint-replacement patients these days are younger and more active than ever before. More than half of all hip-replacement surgeries performed this year are expected to be on people under 65, with the same percentage projected for knee replacements by 2016. The fastest-growing group is patients 46 to 64, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgery.”

The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that from 1997 to 2005, prescriptions for back pain increased by 171%. At the same time, the rate of good patient outcomes fell. ”All the imaging we do, all the drug treatments, all the injections, all the operations have some benefit for some patients,” said Richard A. Deyo, MD, a physician at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland and a coauthor of the report. “But I think in each of those situations we’ve begun using those tests or treatments more widely than science would really support.”

“Let’s not forget that drugs, even common ones like Motrin, have a myriad of adverse and potentially serious side effects,” states Wainner. “Seeing a physical therapist is unique in that the risk of harm is essentially zero and the interventions applied, in particular manual physical therapy and exercise, offer maximum possible relief in the shortest period of time.”

“No question that total joint replacements and medication for selected conditions have their place, but when it comes to musculoskeletal pain, surgery and drugs should not be the primary interventions of choice,” Wainner continues. “There has been a voluminous increase in the volume and quality of evidence that hands on physical therapy can reduce pain and disability and increase function. A combination of education, hands on therapy, and exercise can also reduce depression, anxiety, and fear in patients suffering from these conditions without the use of drugs or surgery in most cases.”

The therapists at TexPTS are experts in the non-surgical treatment of bone and joint conditions. They can help patients recover using hands-on physical therapy and supervised, targeted exercise. They also teach patients how to prevent future problems. In the July 2006 issue of the Clinical Journal of Pain, researchers found that patients who were seen by a physical therapist within 2 days of injury or pain reported less pain after 6 months than patients who waited 4 weeks before receiving therapy. Bottom line: seeing a physical therapist quickly means less pain in the long run.

The spine experts at TexPTS can help decrease pain, reduce the need for prescription drugs, and prevent costly and painful surgery.

About Texas Physical Therapy Specialists:
Texas Physical Therapy Specialists (TexPTS) is a private physical therapy practice with locations throughout San Antonio, Austin, and Tyler. Known for teaching and training physical therapists all over the US, TexPTS physical therapists pride themselves in being spine experts. They deliver hands-on physical therapy based on the newest research to achieve the best results for patients with bad backs, achy joints, wounded hands, and work injuries. Along the way, the TexPTS family has fun and makes friends with their patients (and their pets, their kids, their in-laws, and neighbors….) Perhaps this is why they were voted the Best Private Physical Therapy Practice in the U.S. in 2009 by their peers in the American Physical Therapy Association. For more information visit our website at TexPTS.com or find us on Facebook.

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