Loudoun County, Va. — Most people think that in order to have a concussion you must “black out” or lose consciousness, however this is not as common as people think. There are many other signs and symptoms of a concussion. The key to treating concussions, is being able to identify them early on to avoid further injury to our brains. Some common symptoms following a brain injury include but are not limited to: Headache Pressure in head Neck pain Nausea or vomiting Dizziness Blurred vision Balance problems Sensitivity to light Sensitivity to noise Confusion Difficulty remembering Fatigue or low energy…

Loudoun County, Va. — Right now, as you are all well aware, the whole world is responding to a pandemic. The Coronavirus or COVID-19 – which is one of many coronaviruses that have affected people in the past – has everyone on lockdown. You may be in quarantine as you read this blog – which is great. However, bodily maintenance is still important for you whether you’ve recently finished a course of physical therapy, or you’ve decided to put PT on hold until things (whenever they do) blow over. It is important to continue at home exercises to reach the…

Loudoun County, Va. — The hamstrings play an important role in the lower body. They are responsible for helping us stand, walk, run, and jump. Hamstrings are often neglected and can result in an injury to them. One of the most common hamstring injuries that we see in the clinic is the hamstring strain. What are the Hamstrings? The hamstrings are made up of three muscles that make up the back of your thigh. They start at the pelvis and travel down and attach just below the knee joint. The semitendinosis The semimembranosis The biceps femoris These muscles work together…

Loudoun County, Va. — Low back pain can affect our lives in many ways. It can prevent us from exercising, sleeping, working, and spending time with our families. Those four activities alone make up pretty much the entire day for a lot of us. So the question becomes, why aren’t we taking action to handle our pain? Signs and Symptoms of Low Back Pain Every individual experiences different signs and symptoms, however these are the most common: muscle tightness or spasms sharp or dull pain limited range of motion, stinging or burning pain that travels to the buttocks or thigh…

Loudoun County, Va. — Overall ankle weakness can lead to a number of injuries, not only with the ankle joint specifically but it can lead to injuries at other joints such as the knee and also down into the foot. Typical ankle sprains (also known as “rolling” your ankle) can occur if the muscles on the medial and lateral side of our ankles are weak. Ankle weakness can also contribute to over-pronation of the foot which can lead to injuries such as plantar fasciitis. Over-pronation can also cause injuries up at the knee including sprains of ligaments or abnormal patellar-tracking…

Loudoun County, Va. — Tennis Elbow and Golfer’s Elbow are both overuse injuries that are caused by any activity that requires repetitive motion of the arm and wrist. Repetitive motions using forehand/backhand are common in cooks, painters, carpenters, plumbers or computer/mouse work. Either one of these conditions can also develop from everyday chores such as raking, gardening, chopping wood, or shoveling. Both of these conditions are forms or epicondylitis, which is a medical term for inflammation of a tendon that attaches to bone (Epicondyle) of the elbow joint. Common symptoms of Tennis Elbow/Lateral Epicondylitis Pain that radiates from the outside…