The COVID-19 lockdown forced people and businesses to adapt to a new normal as person-to-person contact needed to remain limited, and one way that many physical therapy clinics worked to continue seeing patients was by adding telehealth consultations. The team at OrthoRehab Specialists was no different, and these virtual appointments allowed us to continue seeing patients. Moreover, patients were still able to get the care they needed to further their rehab efforts.
One of the main questions about telehealth consultations during the COVID-19 lockdowns centered around their efficacy. Were these virtual visits still effective, or were patients being shortchanged? According to a new study, patients still received a very high level of care when pursuing telehealth appointments for their chronic knee pain.
Virtual Visits For Knee Pain
For the study, participants with chronic knee pain were assigned to either the in-person or telehealth physical therapy groups. Patients pursued PT through these two methods over the course of three months, and researchers tracked a number of different factors related to their care and recovery. After looking at the data, researchers found:
- Participants in the in-person and telehealth groups had similar improvements in knee pain and physical function over the three-month period.
- Patients in the online group had better attendance for their PT sessions.
- Patients in the online group reported higher convenience.
- At the 9 months follow-up, patients in the telerehabilitation group had higher physical activity scores than the in-person group.
The results show that patients can still receive a very high level of care even if they can’t meet with their physical therapist face to face, at least when it comes to chronic knee discomfort. This may be a major breakthrough for patients considering that knee replacement surgery is the most common joint replacement procedure performed in the US. The majority of patients do not pursue aggressive physical therapy prior to being told they need a knee replacement procedure despite evidence that PT can help prevent their need for a joint replacement. If access to effective physical therapy is improved through telehealth appointments, it’s possible that a number of surgeries and millions of dollars in healthcare expenses could be saved.
One of the main reasons why we continue to offer telehealth appointments even though the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be in the rearview mirror is because we’ve seen firsthand how effective these virtual appointments can be. We’re confident in our ability to deliver a high-level of care in-person or virtually to whoever needs help with their rehab. This removes a number of barriers to care for the patient. If driving is impossible or you don’t want to limit yourself to a provider in your home town, you can connect with the team at OrthoRehab Specialists through a virtual appointment. Let us (virtually) come to your home and help you continue to progress with your recovery after an injury or surgery.
You can set up a virtual appointment by giving our team a call at (612) 339-2041, or you can learn more about the telehealth process by heading over to his page.
PT of Costa Rican National Soccer Team for 2007 World Cup in Victoria, CAN. Clinical Instructor for University of Minnesota Doctor of Physical Therapy Affiliations
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