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A characteristic of scapulothoracic dysfunction is the tendency for the upper regions of the trapezius to hypertrophy in relation to its middle and lower portions. This creates a muscular imbalance that can alter scapular position and subsequently the length–tension relationship of the shoulder muscles. Tape was applied over the right upper trapezius to inhibit electrical activity in the muscles of 10 uninjured subjects. EMG activity was recorded in two locations of the upper trapezius and one location in the middle to lower trapezius region while each subject maintained an isometric contraction designed to activate both muscles. With the tape applied, there was a statistically significant reduction in EMG activity of the upper trapezius with a corresponding increase in the middle/lower trapezius. The ability of the tape to alter trapezius activity in this fashion may help correct muscular imbalances in the trapezius muscle.

All mature forms of locomotion involve periods of unilateral stance. Unipedal hopping may provide useful information about the neuromuscular and biomechanical capabilities of a single lower extremity in adults. This study investigated whether hopping influenced vertical stiffness and lower extremity angular kinematics during human unipedal hopping. Vertical force and two-dimensional kinematics were measured in 10 healthy males hopping at three frequencies: preferred, +20%, and -20%. At +20%, compared to preferred, vertical stiffness increased 55% as hip flexion, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion decreased, while at -20% vertical stiffness decreased 39.4% as hip flexion, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion increased. As in bipedal hopping, the force-displacement relationship was more springlike at the preferred rate and +20% than at -20%. Given the prevalence of unilateral stance during walking, running, and skipping, findings related to unipedal hopping may be useful in the rehabilitation or conditioning of lower extremities.

Objective Academic physical therapy has no universal metrics by which educational programs can measure outcomes, limiting their ability to benchmark to their own historical performance, to peer institutions, or to other healthcare professions. The PT-GQ survey, adapted from the Association of American Medical Colleges’ (AAMC) Graduation Questionnaire, addresses this gap by offering both inter-professional insight and fine-scale assessment of physical therapist education. This study reports the first wave of findings from an ongoing multi-site trial of the PT-GQ among diverse academic physical therapy programs, including: 1) benchmarks for academic physical therapy, and 2) a comparison of the physical therapist student experience to medical education benchmarks. Methods Thirty-four doctor of physical therapy (DPT) programs (13.2% nationwide sample) administered the online survey to DPT graduates during the 2019–2020 academic year. PT-GQ and AAMC data were contrasted via Welch’s unequal-variance t-test and Hedges’ g (effect size). Results A total of 1025 respondents participated in the study (response rate: 63.9%). Average survey duration was 31.8 minutes. Overall educational satisfaction was comparable to medicine, and respondents identified areas of curricular strength (eg, anatomy) and weakness (eg, pharmacology). DPT respondents provided higher ratings of faculty professionalism than medicine, lower rates of student mistreatment, and a lesser impact of within-program diversity upon their training. One-third of respondents were less than “Satisfied” with student mental health services. DPT respondents reported significantly higher Exhaustion but lower Disengagement than medical students, along with lower Tolerance for Ambiguity. Of DPT respondents who reported educational debt, one-third reported debt exceeding $150,000, the threshold above which the DPT degree loses economic power. Conclusions These academic benchmarks, using the PT-GQ, provided insight into physical therapist education and identified differences between physical therapist and medical student perceptions. Impact This ongoing trial will establish a comprehensive set of benchmarks to better understand academic physical therapy outcomes.

This case series suggests that an impairment-based approach directed at the hip joints may lead to improvements in pain, function, and disability in patients with CLBP. A neurophysiologic mechanism may be a plausible explanation regarding the clinical outcomes of this study. A larger, well-controlled trial is needed to determine the potential effectiveness of this approach with patients with CLBP.