The Physio Pulse Podcast

Today on the Physio Pulse we had the pleasure of speaking with Joe Palmer who is a lecturer and researcher working in Sheffield and was in the first cohort of clinicians who moved into the First Contact Physiotherapy roles. We speak about the realities of lecturing and research, the trials and tribulations of FCP and how to get clinicians to fall in love with stats. Hope you enjoy!Click here for a link to the statistics book Joe mentioned!

We sit down and read the Kim Herbert-Losier paper on updated normative values and reliability of the calf raise test. What does the average actually show, how should it be completed to have comparative values and what does it inform?Also, James confesses to having very skinny calves.Apologies as Jeff's audio is a little bit low on this one!Please note, this episode does not constitute medical advice.

In this episode, we’re joined by Paul Houghoughi, better known as The Climbing Physio, to dive deep into the world of climbing injuries, rehab, and performance. Paul shares his insights on the most common climbing-related injuries, the unique demands of the sport and the best strategies for rehab and prevention. Tune in and learn how to take your hand rehab game—to the next level!

This week James and Jeff delve into one (...of the many) subgroup analyses of the DREAM study. What is better surgery or Physiotherapy for meniscal tears?How can we predict which patients will do well in each group? Why does Jeff hate the world of research?

This week we have a great discussion with Dr. Jared Powell on all things relating to dispositional causation and how this relates to positive clinical improvements in people with shoulder pain (but this could be extended to most MSK pain really!) These complex topics are broken down into very digestible soundbites and we think this episode is a must listen, and probably one to revisit in the future! Please note, this episode does not constitute medical advice.

Would you have ever considered injection someone with mid-portion achilles tendinopathy 3 times in the space of 12 weeks? Johanssen et al (2022) did in todays paper and the results might surprise you! This is the closest we have come on having genuinely different views on a paper and was a fun conversation! Please note, this episode does not constitute medical advice.

A quick overview of RCRSP - What is the literature around diagnosis? - Are special tests useful for this condition? - Brief overview of the history of this condition - What is the evidence around strengthening exercises for this condition? Hope you enjoy!

Should we be ordering imaging for patients when it won't change management, but it is perceived (sometimes wrongly?) that it could help their health anxiety? This is a clinically grey area, and one we have tried to tackle in the absence of any strong direction from the literature. Jeff and James take opposite sides in the debate initially before settling into what we think good practice looks like. This was a difficult topic to use as our first debate format, but we hope it is interesting! Please use the comment section to add any thoughts you have on this!

Kick off 2025 with a humorous mishap as the hosts dive into the effectiveness of shockwave therapy for plantar fasciitis. They tackle the challenges of patient communication and reveal frustrations in consultations. The episode critiques misleading research on patellar tendinopathy and discusses misconceptions about osteoarthritis. Through engaging discussions, they explore shockwave therapy's mixed opinions, the value of customization in orthotics, and the importance of personalized treatment. Prepare for laughs and insights as they navigate the world of physiotherapy!

This week we chat around James' injection skills, what we have found doing a podcast is like and recommendations for 2025. James also provides an update to a case study he raised a few episodes back. See you in 2025!