American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release Apr 07, 2014

Study Suggests Physical Therapy (PT) Instructional Video May be as Good as an In-Person PT Visit for Teaching Proper Technique in Shoulder Rehabilitation Exercises

NEW ORLEANS, La. – David J. Berkoff, MD, sports medicine physician and associate professor of orthopaedics at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, presented, “Corrected Error Video vs PT-Instructed home Exercise Program: Accuracy of Performing Therapeutic Exercises” today at the 23rd Annual Meeting of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine at the Hyatt Regency in New Orleans, La.

The purpose of his research was to determine if a Corrected Error Video (CEV) is as effective as a single visit with a physical therapist to teach subjects to properly perform shoulder rehabilitation exercises. Dr. Berkoff hosted a prospective single-blinded interventional trial analyzing 28 subjects (16 using CEV; 12 in PT—one session with handouts), neither of which had any shoulder complaints and no experience with shoulder PT. Each group had one week to learn four exercises: scapular retraction, standing row, external rotation with a band and internal rotation with a band. Subjects were then videotaped individually as they performed the exercises. Two physical therapists scored the tests using the shoulder exercise evaluation tool (SEAT).

Total SEAT scores showed no difference between the two groups, thereby suggesting that using a CEV is as effective at teaching subjects to perform proper shoulder rehabilitation exercises as an in-person single visit with a physical therapist.

“These results are significant for two reasons,” said Dr. Berkoff, who also serves on the AMSSM Board of Directors. “First, having an additional tool to augment what the patient learns at an initial PT visit may help with exercise accuracy and hopefully therefore improve outcomes. Additionally as access to physical therapy becomes more limited due either to cost or insurance, identifying new tools to better help out patients will be essential.”
 

About the AMSSM Annual Meeting: More than 1,400 sports medicine physicians from the United States and abroad come together to address advances and challenges in sports medicine through lectures and research. Learn more at https://www.amssm.org/ConferencesDetails.php?IDconf=58&Past=.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of 2,500 sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org

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