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Study Finds Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy Helps Patients Self-Manage Symptom

MDT, mechanical diagnosis, spine, low back pain

A study of 45 musculoskeletal disorder patients in Japan sought to determine the extent to which mechanical diagnosis and therapy (MDT) could help patients in the self-management and self-monitoring of their pain symptoms. The results of the study indicate that MDT is effective in helping patients to understand, monitor, and manage their own pain and symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders.

 

The Study Subjects Received MDT Twice a Week for One Month

The subjects involved in the study included 45 outpatients from an orthopedic clinic in Japan. Each subject suffered from a musculoskeletal disorder that had been previously diagnosed by an orthopedic surgeon. Only patients without medical contraindications to MDT techniques could participate. Those with fractures, infections, or severe osteoporosis were excluded from the study, as were patients with diagnosed cognitive or neurological disorders or who were undergoing other forms of medical intervention. Each participant was involved in outpatient physiotherapy at a local orthopedic clinic and was over the age of 20 years-old.

Establishing a Baseline and Follow-Up to Track Progress

Each subject in the study received MDT from a qualified MDT physical therapist for 20 to 40 minutes, up to twice a week. The intervention included physical evaluations, a discussion of the patient’s medical history, and MDT-classified managements. Follow-up visits addressed any problems with the therapy, and appropriate adjustments of the techniques were made. The MDT visits were conducted for approximately one month, and a baseline questionnaire was completed by the subjects at the beginning of treatment and in a follow-up consultation, one month after the end of their treatment period. The Health Education Impact Questionnaire and the Self-monitoring and Insight and Skill and Technique Acquisition scores rated the subjects’ answers to compare the proportion of subjects who demonstrated a positive “reliable change” in self-monitoring, insight about their conditions, and the ability to self-manage their symptoms after having undergone MDT.

 

Improvement in Self-Monitoring and Self-Management Skills Post-MDT

The results of the study indicated a significant improvement in the subjects’ abilities to self-monitor, have insight into, and manage their own musculoskeletal disorders after a series of MDT treatments over the course of one month. In addition to gaining valuable insight into and ways to manage their own conditions, more than 71 percent of the study’s participants experienced meaningful improvement in their physical condition after an average of 3.8 MDT sessions. The results of the study compare favorably to previous studies of passive therapeutic forms, where patients receive therapeutic manipulations by their practitioners, without being educated or counseled about the condition being treated. The results of this study indicate that MDT is not only an effective means of treatment for patients with musculoskeletal disorders, but it empowers patients in learning to self-manage and monitor their own symptoms and dysfunction.

 

KEYWORDS: Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy Helps Patients Self-Manage, mechanical diagnosis and therapy (MDT) could help patients in the self-management and self-monitoring of their pain symptoms, significant improvement in the subjects’ abilities to self-monitor, have insight into, and manage their own musculoskeletal disorders after a series of MDT treatments, effective means of treatment for patients with musculoskeletal disorders, pain and symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders

 

 

 

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