Spinal Disorders - Instructional Use Statement

The following information is used for instructional purposes for students enrolled in the Physical Therapist Assistant Program at Lane Community College. It is not intended for commercial use or distribution or commercial purposes. It is not intended to serve as medical advice or treatment. Contact howardc@lanecc.edu for permissions.

Introduction

Note: There are approximately 30 minutes of embedded screencasts as part of this interactive lecture. Additional supplemental materal is included as hyperlinks.

alternative accessible content

4 minute video

 

In this lesson, students will apply knowledge of anatomy and kinesiology of the spine to specific disorders encountered in physical therapy. The content and instruction assumes students have a working knowledge of the bones, ligaments, nerves, and muscles of the spine. Spinal pain is the number one reason people encounter and use physical therapy. PTAs must have an understanding of normal and abnormal spinal function and degenerative conditions in order to correctly select, apply, and compare results with the physical therapy evaluation and assessment.

Objectives

  1. Describe the phases of spinal joint and disc degeneration
  2. Describe mechanisms, signs and symptoms of common spinal disorders
  3. Differentiate between conditions of hypomobility versus instability
  4. Identify the most commonly involved spinal segments in degenerative disc disease
  5. Discriminate between clinical scenarios which indicate a surgical or other medical emergency/complication
  6. Compare and describe common surgical interventions for the spine
  7. Describe findings of musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, and special tests performed during PT examination of spinal disorders.
  8. Compare and contrast classification systems for low back and spinal pain

 


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