Tom Willemann Health Tips

"Almost Daily Health Tips From Physical Therapist Tom Willemann..."

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Healing and Strengthening Your Ankle After a Sprain

Healing and Strengthening Your Ankle After a Sprain

Ankle sprain, one of the most common injuries, affects about 25,000 people every day. An ankle sprain is an injury to one of the ligaments in your ankle. A sudden twisting motion can cause these tough bands of tissue to stretch too far or snap entirely. Wearing high heels, playing sports that require swift changesContinue Reading »

Be Hip to Metal-on-Metal Implants

Be Hip to Metal-on-Metal Implants

If you have had a hip replaced with a metal-on-metal (MoM) implant, you may be concerned about reports of health problems with this type of artificial joint. Hip implants are fabricated from metal, plastic, ceramic or a combination of materials. Each type has risks and benefits, and it is up to you and your surgeonContinue Reading »

To Stretch or Not to Stretch?

To Stretch or Not to Stretch?

  In the past, everyone was taught to stretch before engaging in physical activity. Now, however, researchers say that certain popular stretching routines are not only ineffective as warm-ups but can sometimes leave you even more vulnerable to injury.   There are two types of stretching techniques. Dynamic stretches are aerobic exercises of light-to-moderate intensityContinue Reading »

TENS Ways to Alleviate Pain

TENS Ways to Alleviate Pain

One approach used in a rehabilitation program, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) uses an electric current to stimulate muscles to contract. Electrical impulses are thought to interrupt messages sent by pain receptors from the nerves to the brain. If the brain does not receive these messages, it does not recognize pain, and you do notContinue Reading »

When Your Shoulder Blade Is “SICK”

When Your Shoulder Blade Is “SICK”

Do you have a “SICK” scapula? No, not sick with a fever or a cold, but SICK—an abnormal condition of the shoulder blade. This condition is characterized by   Scapular malposition: The scapula has moved to an abnormal position on the rib cage.   Inferior medial border prominence: The scapula protrudes abnormally along the back.Continue Reading »

True or False? I should drink 8 cups of water a day.

True or False? I should drink 8 cups of water a day.

Answer:  False, and here’s the explanation: The initial recommendation was made in 1945 by the Food and Nutrition Board, now the Institute of Medicine.  WOW!  Just under 70 years old, oversimplified, and still quoted over and over! Most people who read this study did not read the details . The recommendation is based on anContinue Reading »

ACL Repair: Your Tissue or Someone Else’s?

ACL Repair: Your Tissue or Someone Else’s?

If you have torn your anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), the main ligament that stabilizes the knee, and are scheduled for reconstructive surgery to repair it, your surgeon could use either an autograft or an allograft. What is the difference between the two? An autograft is a piece of tissue removed from your body and usedContinue Reading »