Research results relating to bone disease

July 29, 2005

Fresh research results relating to devastating bone disease to be heard at NZ physios conference

The treatment of tennis elbows, Achilles’ heels, back movement, cruciate ligaments, bone disease and hamstrings come under intense scrutiny at the national physiotherapists conference in Rotorua this weekend.

Two hundred delegates will listen to papers considering new and improved ways of physiotherapy treatment at the New Zealand Manipulative Physiotherapists Association conference which started today.

Keynote speaker is Meena. Sran of Vancouver in Canada. Dr Sran says there is strong evidence that physical activity and a good diet and pharmacotherapy are effective in the prevention and management of osteoporosis (bone disease).

She has looked into therapy techniques to treat patients with spinal pain as a result of osteoporotic fractures.

New Zealander Stephen Edmondston of Curtin University in Perth, will provide results of his research on the stress on the thoracic spine.

He led a clinical study in Perth looking at the rate and magnitude of the response to physiotherapy treatment for non-traumatic neck pain.

Stephanie Woodley and Susan Mercer of Otago University and Erik Dombroski of Auckland University of Technology (AUT) will talk about hamstrings.

Duncan Reid of AUT, a New Zealand Olympic Games physio, will explain his views on treatment of acute anterior cruciate ligament rupture.

Mr Reid said the knee was one of the most commonly injured joints.

``It has been estimated that nearly half of all knee injuries involve the anterior cruciate ligament. But there is variation with respect to diagnosis and overall physiotherapy management.’’

Gisela Sole of Otago University will talk about the high incidence of lower limb stress fractures that has been found in New Zealand elite triathletes over the past three years.

The three-day conference will learn from international speakers who have been researching the latest treatments for conditions such as Achilles tendonitis, and tennis elbow. These conditions are notoriously slow to heal and prevent many top sports people from getting back to sport quickly.

Delegates will hear more about osteoporosis, which is one of the major diseases that affect older people and particularly women. ACC statistics show they spent $47 million on accidents on people aged 60 to 74 in 2003 and much of this is related to falls.

Physiotherapists play an important role in the rehabilitation of patients who have suffered a fractured hip but also in the management of patients with osteoporosis.

ENDS

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