Abstract
A 28-year-old patient with cervical radiculopathy underwent physical therapy for 12 sessions over 6 weeks at an outpatient orthopedic private practice clinic. The treatment was conducted by a student physical therapist under the direct supervision of a licensed physical therapist.
The patient was evaluated at the initial encounter with range of motion, manual muscle tests, neurological testing, and special tests. A plan of care was established to address range of motion and strength deficits, pain, upper extremity (UE) related disability, limited driving capacity, and limited work and cooking capacity. Main goals for the patient were to improve the length of time she could drive, return to full work capacity, and return to cooking meals. Main interventions used were manual therapy, impairment-based therapeutic exercise, and activity modification. The patient responded positively to the physical therapy interventions and achieved the following goals: increased range of motion, increased strength, decreased pain, reduced UE related disability, improved driving distance, returned to full work capacity, and returned to cooking meals. The patient was discharged to home with a home exercise program.