This lecture is a can’t miss experience where you will hear the latest information on screening, referral, and care for Long COVID. As the value of PT in this population is recognized, referrals will increase either by medical providers or through direct access.  As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, a significant group of patients who survive the disease experience long-lasting symptoms and negative effects on their health. These can include long-lasting effects on the heart, lungs, immune system, mental health, and overall quality of life. Such persistent “long-haul” complications have been reported by our patients and have been described in the medical literature, ranging from respiratory problems to exhaustion from even the slightest exertion, as well as nerve pain, persistent headaches, trouble concentrating, or memory trouble sometimes referred to as “brain fog.” Typically, the symptoms persist for weeks or months after someone has recovered from COVID-19.   

The purpose of this course is to introduce the physical therapists and physical therapist assistants to the components of multidisciplinary long COVID care.  This will allow therapists outside of “long COVID clinic” centers to understand the role of each discipline and recognize whom to consult when creating their own “clinic without walls” through referral networks and outreach in their communities. This course will highlight the key conditions that should be screened and when necessary, referred for clearance, before a long COVID rehabilitation program begins, and provide real world examples of physical therapy evaluations, treatments, and progressions.   Come learn to avoid the pitfalls of treating patients with long COVID, and learn the value of pacing and many other “tricks of the trade” by those in the field.

Learning Objectives:

1. Learner will be able to define Long COVID and recognize its variable presentations.

2. Learner will be able to accurately screen for Long COVID sequelae/symptoms and understand referral needs for the patient population.

3. Learner will be able to identify examination techniques (test and measures) to identify impairments related to Long COVID.

4. Learner will demonstrate understanding of appropriate and effective interventions to manage Long COVID, including knowledge of progressions and regressions, to safely achieve patient goals.

5. Learner will understand the multi-disciplinary needs of this patient population.

6. Learner will demonstrate understanding of where to locate resources and further education related to Long COVID.

7. Learner will be able to identify appropriate outcomes measures to quantify progress of patient population.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recording.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org.

Lower extremity tendinopathy is a painful and debilitating injury, which represents a substantial portion of orthopedic caseloads. As frustrating as this injury is for patients, it can be equally frustrating for clinicians to treat. The research guiding clinical practice has lagged more acute orthopedic injuries, symptoms may be slow to respond to treatments, and recurrence rates are high. This course will provide an update on the current science of tendinopathy treatment, with a focus on immediate clinical translation. After completing this course, participants will have an understanding of tendon injury and healing, the clinical skills to evaluate and diagnose common lower extremity tendinopathies (gluteal, proximal hamstring, patellar, Achilles), established treatment protocols to implement in the clinic, and the ability to modify these protocols for unique or challenging case presentations. 

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the tendon injury and healing process.
2. Conduct a comprehensive clinical exam for common lower extremity tendinopathies.
3. Explain the basic mechanism of mechanotherapy for tendinopathy treatment and dosage parameters of established loading programs.
4. Identify complicating factors that may diminish a patient’s response to established loading programs.
5. Design an individualized loading program for patients with lower extremity tendinopathy, which accounts for complicating factors.
6. Evaluated the utility of adjunctive treatments for patients with lower extremity tendinopathy.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the on-demand recording.
2. Click Complete Post Test to complete the assessment. Participants will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer 12 out of 17 questions correctly.
3. Click Complete Evaluation to provide valuable activity feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the button Claim Credits in the box titled Claim Credits & Certificate. Click the button View/Print Certificate to save or print your certificate. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center, clicking Dashboard, and clicking Transcript/Achievements.

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org

There is growing evidence that secondary prevention of costly and disabling musculoskeletal-related pain requires clinicians to 1) identify those patients at risk for becoming disabled with musculoskeletal pain, and 2) implement intervention strategies to address the cognitive and affective tendencies that coexist with the physical impairments associated with musculoskeletal pain. Physical therapists are equipped to be the leaders in preventing musculoskeletal pain and disability. The focus of this seminar is to introduce and train PTs in the skills to take this lead.

This training will enable physical therapists to improve their effectiveness in identifying psychological impairments associated with commonly diagnosed mental disorders. And then incorporate interviewing, communication skills, and action-oriented patient education to optimally structure therapist-patient relationships that promote the patient's self-responsibility and efficacy. This training will highlight clinical practice guideline recommendations providing strategies to prevent the progression of acute pain to chronic, disabling conditions. Patient education and counseling strategies discussed and practiced during this session will equip therapists with fundamental skills to address 1) personality disorders, such as paranoid, avoidant, borderline, or dependent disorders, 2) cognitive tendencies, such as anxiety or fear, 3) affective tendencies, such as depression, 4) pain catastrophizing, such as exaggerated pain experiences, and 5) generalized pain, such as maladaptive central nervous system sensitivity.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completion of this seminar, a participant will be able to:

1. Identify and be motivated to alter common practice patterns that promote longstanding, chronic musculoskeletal pain.
2. Describe the three practice dimensions driving the clinical decisions of clinicians working with individuals to prevent or manage chronic low back pain.
3. Conduction an initial intake and follow-up sessions with a client using Motivational Interviewing.
4. Perform an assessment to determine the presence of mental impairments in the form of cognitive or affective tendencies predictive of the progression of acute pain to chronic disabling pain.
5. Implement education and counseling strategies specific to the presenting mental impairments of individuals with musculoskeletal pain, which have the best evidence to assist the individual with mitigating the progression toward chronic musculoskeletal pain

Growing evidence supports that teaching patients more about the neurophysiology and biology of pain allows for decreased pain, increased movement and function, various decreased psychometric measurements, and higher compliance with therapy. This series of five lectures will instruct attendees about how to communicate with their patients about the neuroscience of pain, learn communication strategies that can help patients along their recovery path, recognize how brief remapping techniques can alter patient sensitivity and positively influence pain in real-life clinical practice, understand how various complex pain issues share some common features, and understand why a new bio-psycho-social approach is needed to address pain in orthopedic surgery.

Learning Objectives:

1. Pain Neuroscience Education: Teaching People about Pain

• Analyze how common faulty cognitions impact pain and disability in people with pain
• Integrate the latest neuroscience of pain into clinical reasoning in people with persistent pain
• Explain to a patient how the body’s alarm system, the nervous system, becomes increasingly sensitive; how it impacts function and how therapy can help

2. Words That Harm and Words That Heal

• Develop and understanding how pain is produced by the brain based on perception of threat
• Recognize how many current models of reception/front office may not only “not help” but indeed increase a patient’s pain experience
• Utilize the latest pain neuroscience research to develop a front office approach that enhance patient care and customer service

3. Graded Motor Imagery for the Clinician

• Develop a greater understanding of the structural and functional changes in the brain as it pertains to pain.
• Recognize various clinical tests that can be used to screen for altered neuroplasticity.
• Recognize how brief remapping techniques can alter patient sensitivity and positively influence pain in real-life clinical practice.

4. Widespread Pain and Fatigue: Treat the Patient, not the Label

• Develop a biological and physiological understanding of widespread pain and fatigue
• Be updated on the latest evidence in regards to etiology, diagnosis, examination and treatment
• Be able to use pain neuroscience education to help patients develop a greater understanding of their pain experience and build an evidence-based treatment plan

5. Preoperative Pain Neuroscience Education

• Understand why a new bio-psycho-social approach is needed to address pain in orthopedic surgery
• Understand the development and validation process of the preoperative pain neuroscience education program for orthopedics
• Recognize why the preoperative neuroscience educational program produced superior results to the biomedical model utilized by US surgeons

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recording.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 1.6-3.8 million sports- and recreation-related concussions occur each year in the U.S. Proper evaluation and treatment may lead to a more complete and timely recovery. This course will introduce evaluation and management of post-concussion symptoms using clinical subtypes. Anxiety/Mood, Cognitive, Ocular-motor, Post-traumatic migraine, and Vestibular subtypes will be discussed, along with the modifiers of Cervical and Sleep.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify common abnormal examination findings following concussion for the five clinical subtypes

2. Identify interventions post-concussion symptoms based on clinical subtype

3. Identify factors that contribute to prognosis and outcome following concussion

4. Describe considerations to facilitate recovery and inform safe return to play

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recording.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

Exercise training with blood flow restriction (BFR) is becoming increasingly popular in rehabilitation, allowing skeletal muscle strengthening and hypertrophy to be accomplished using lower workloads, fewer repetitions, and shorter durations. These benefits have been seen across a variety of musculoskeletal conditions and age ranges, however the predominant clinical focus has been on the younger orthopedic patient. Recently clinical application and research has begun to focus on the application of BFR for the geriatric sarcopenic patient, pediatrics and non-orthopedic diagnosis such as diabetes and Parkinson's disease. Additionally, angiogenic benefits and bone sparing mechanisms have increased research interest in the use of BFR to address vascular diseases and improve bone quality after surgery.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recordings.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

The most common otologic causes of vertigo and imbalance that a physical therapist is likely to encounter are benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) and peripheral vestibular hypofunction. This course will focus on recent advances in the management of both, to include biomechanics of the vestibular system, differential diagnosis, and principles of motor control. The interpretation of typical and unusual patterns of nystagmus observed during positional testing will be used to guide treatment based on biomechanics of BPPV; the principals of motor learning in the VOR will be applied to develop gaze stability training. Cases will be used to highlight the differential diagnosis process and therapeutic interventions.

Learning Objectives: 

1. Understand the mechanics of the semicircular canals and macula in health.
2. Interpret the findings of common vestibular tests based on an understanding of mechanics of the canal and macula.
3. Use evidence based clinical decision rules to differentiate peripheral versus central vestibular dysfunction.
4. Identify and interpret typical and atypical patterns of benign paroxysmal position nystagmus observed during positional testing and canalith repositioning maneuvers.
5. Implement a canalith repositioning maneuver for the treatment of BPPV based on the anatomy and mechanics of the canal involved.
6. Develop and implement a vestibular rehabilitation therapy program for peripheral vestibular hypofunction based on the principles of neuroplasticity of the VOR.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recordings.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

Physical therapists provide incredibly valuable services to their patients and their communities, yet our services are often laden with administrative burden and payment pressure. Speakers will explore and explain compliance and optimal application of regulations that communicate the value of physical therapist services, resulting in a better bottom line.

In this course, speakers will review Medicare’s physical therapy documentation and billing requirements and discuss best practices. In addition, with the COVID-19 public health emergency and expansion of telehealth, speakers will review the recent telehealth policy changes and how physical therapy providers can implement telehealth in their practice with confidence that they are doing it legally and ethically.  

Finally, guest speakers will provide an overview of HIPAA, self-referral, and anti-kickback statutes and regulations and discuss the implications of such laws for physical therapy providers.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe Medicare Part B therapy documentation requirements and documentation best practices.

2. Develop thorough understanding of billing and coding best practices.

3. Identify recent telehealth payment and policy changes that could have an impact on your practice or organization.

4. Develop a thorough understanding of self-referral and anti-kickback laws and how they apply to physical therapy providers.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recordings.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

Bicycling is a form of recreation, rehabilitation, and transportation. Bicycling should play an important role with population health. The inclusion of bicyclist evaluation to the physical therapy practice makes good sense. Bicycling is a form of "gait", it is movement. It is well established that irregularities of gait or movement are causal factors of movement disorders. It is no different with a bicyclist and their bicycle equipment. A bicyclist with a bicycle related movement disorder should be evaluated by a Physical Therapist to assess and treat root cause of movement disorder. One should argue that treating a bicyclist without observing their equipment and the use of their equipment is incomplete and inefficient treatment. This course will describe and demonstrate best practices for Physical Therapists clinical work with bicyclists. This course will provide and demonstrate effective treatment interventions for the bicyclist.

Patients/clients should bring their bicycling equipment associated with injury/episode of care for evaluation. Evaluation of bicyclists' equipment requires special equipment, basic evaluation tools, bicycle tools, the mechanical knowledge of how to use them, and the use of basic adaptive/bicycle equipment (stems, saddles, seatposts, pedals, etc).

This course will provide a historical perspective of "bike fit", bicycle positioning as it relates to the physical therapy profession. It will charge the physical therapy profession to consider bicycle-related niche practices. This will allow the public to lean more towards and trust the physical therapy profession to effectively manage their bicycle movement needs as it relates neurological and musculoskeletal issues.

The course will conclude with a lab session that demonstrates basic evaluative and intervention strategies.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe basic endurance bicycling posture.
2. Describe basic bicycling function (pedaling, bicycle handling).
3. Be able to list necessary equipment for evaluation of the bicyclist.
4. Demonstrate basic static evaluation of the bicyclist.
5. Demonstrates basic dynamic evaluation of a bicyclist.
6. Be able to make reasonable accommodations/recommendations to improve a bicyclist’s condition.
7. Be able to prescribe effective forms of adaptive exercise for the improved tolerance of bicycling.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recordings.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org. 

As clinicians we want to provide more to our injured runners than a walk to jog progression. Through this course, learn an evidence-based approach to treating the injured runner. This course will review the current literature on running retraining, and help the clinician to identify subgroups of patients that would best benefit from running retraining. Starting from the initial evaluation, this course will help the clinician to identifying risk factors in the runners training program, build confidence in performing in-clinic running analysis, and help to provide the clinician the skill set in development of a comprehensive program in order to optimize return to run programs. This course will be a mixture of lab and lecture.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe evidence-based literature on risk factors associated with running related injuries, and diagnosis’s that would best benefit from running retraining.
2. Learn utilization of technology to perform a running form analysis in the clinic.
3. Be able to develop a comprehensive rehabilitative plan for the injured runner to include mobility, proprioception, strength, and running skills in order to optimize return to run programs.

Course Instructions

1. Click on the Contents tab to watch the course recordings.
2. Click the Take Quiz button to complete the assessment. Learners will have 3 attempts to pass and must answer at least 70% of questions correctly.
3. Click Fill Out Survey under the Evaluation listing to provide valuable course feedback. Scroll down on all questions as there may be answer options that expand past the size of the window.
4. Click the View/Print Your Certificate button under the Certificate listing. You can view/print your certificate at any time by visiting the APTA Learning Center and clicking the CEU Certificate/Transcript link on the left-hand side of the page. 

Need Assistance?

For assistance logging in, accessing activities, claiming credit, or for other questions or concerns, please e-mail learningcenter@apta.org.