McKenzie Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (MDT)
McKenzie Institute certified physical therapists use a logical approach to solving your physical problems. This means that we allow the symptoms to tell us how to treat you--your therapy is continually personalized and tailored to help you get better.
Sounds simple, right? One aspect of expertise is making complex things simple.
It takes years of training in the McKenzie Method to become certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Treatment (MDT). This training allows us to provide the highest level of care to you. This means that a client who has knee pain won’t just be put on the “knee program”. Every patient is different, every pain is distinct. So we work with you, one-on-one to separate the variables, identify the causes, and identify a solution.
STEP 1: ASSESSMENT
McKenzie Mechanical Diagnosis & Therapy (MDT) provides a safe, logical guide to the optimal treatment strategy for each, individual patient. Unique to the McKenzie Method, the process begins with a thorough history and testing of repeated movements to identify distinct patterns of pain responses that are: objective, reproducible and reliable.
STEP 2: TREATMENT
The basis of the McKenzie Method is the patient’s own ability to perform movements and forces to abolish the pain and restore function. A series of individualized exercises are prescribed based on the patient’s responses during the assessment process and – most critically – are based on the identified Direction Preference of movements that will centralize or abolish pain. For example, extension or flexion, right or left lateral movement, etc.
STEP 3: PREVENTIVE STRATEGY
Patients are provided with maintenance exercises that will allow them to overcome persistent problems. By teaching patients how to self-treat their problems, patients gain hands-on knowledge to minimize the risk or recurrence and learn how to quickly manage themselves if symptoms do occur. It is also critical to followup with your physical therapist to ensure that you are on the right track.
Give us a call and we can work you into either our office in downtown Washington, DC near Dupont Circle and Farragut Square; or over in Navy Yard just a few blocks from the Nationals baseball park.