Conditions

Plantar fasciitis is a common condition that causes pain in the heel and bottom of the foot, often due to inflammation of the plantar fascia, a thick band of tissue that connects the heel bone to the toes. Usually, the pain is worse in the morning and when weight-bearing. 

Flat feet (pes planus) refer to a change in foot shape in which the foot does not have a ‘normal’ arch in standing.  Arches develop during early childhood. If the arches don’t develop this can cause pain and affect walking.

Metatarsal fractures are among the most common injuries of the foot that may occur due to trauma or repetitive microstress. It is defined as a complete or incomplete break in one of the five metatarsal bones of the foot.

Bunions are associated with Hallux Valgus, a condition where the big toe drifts outwards, toward the smaller toes, causing a bony bump to occur. Pain from bunions develops here due to shoe irritation, and in the other toes due to crowding and layered mechanical forces in the ball of the foot.

Pain on the outside aspect of the wrist due to injury of the triangular fibrocartilage complex which gives the wrist stability.

A fracture of one of the carpal bones of the wrist near the thumb which has a slow rate of healing.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a common condition that causes numbness, tingling, and weakness in the hand and wrist. It occurs when the median nerve, which runs through a narrow passageway in the wrist called the carpal tunnel, becomes compressed or pinched.

80% of people will experience an episode of low back pain in their lifetime. There are usually multiple causes for pain which can resolve with physio and exercise without the need for scans and X-rays.

Mid back pain can radiate into the chest and is usually due to stiffness and tightness through the muscles and joints in your back.

Upper back and neck pain is very common especially with sitting at a computer. It’s important to move regularly and change position throughout the day.

Many people are very concerned about their discs in their spine. We used to think herniated discs were the cause of back pain however we now know that many people who have no back pain have herniated discs seen on scans. They are wrinkles on the inside.

PGP also known as symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD). PGP is a collection of uncomfortable symptoms generally caused by a stiffness of your pelvic joints, or the joints moving unevenly at either the back or front of your pelvis. It can present itself as pain/discomfort in the lower back, pelvic area or pubic bone.

Urinary incontinence is the unintentional passing of urine. It’s a common problem thought to affect millions of people but often is not discussed. 

There are several types of urinary incontinence, including:

• Stress Incontinence – when urine leaks out at times when your bladder is under pressure; for example, when you cough or laugh. 
• Urge Incontinence – when urine leaks as you feel a sudden, intense urge to pee, or soon afterwards.
• Overflow Incontinence (chronic urinary retention) – when you’re unable to fully empty your bladder, which causes frequent leaking.

Total Incontinence – when your bladder cannot store any urine at all, which causes you to pass urine constantly or have frequent leaking.

This includes pain during sexual intercourse, involuntary painful contraction (spasm) of the muscles around the vagina, and lack of interest or desire for sex and problems with arousal or orgasm; this often then causes distress for the woman.

This is the separation of the muscles along the middle of the abdomen, typically seen in women during and after pregnancy. It sometimes is presented as a ‘doming’ of the abdominal muscles when they are under stress. 

Pelvic organ prolapse is when one or more of the organs in the pelvis protrude down from their ‘normal’ position and bulge into the vagina. It can be the uterus, bowel, bladder or top of the vagina.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition that occurs when swelling in your wrist presses on a nerve (median) and causes pain in your hand. Unfortunately it is common in pregnancy, usually due to the global swelling throughout the body, and goes away when the baby is born. It can cause pain, weakness, numbness and/or tingling in your thumb, fingers and hand.

Ankle instability is caused by weakened ligaments surrounding the ankle bones. This is most often a direct result of one or more ankle injuries that do not heal properly.  With each sprain the ligaments are further stretched and weakened resulting in greater instability.

An ankle sprain occurs when the strong ligaments that support the ankle stretch beyond their limits and tear (to differing degrees). The severity of a sprain can vary greatly depending on the number of ligaments involved and to the extent to which the ligaments are torn.

Achilles tendinitis is a common condition that occurs when the large tendon that runs down the back of the lower leg and connects it to the heel bone, becomes irritated and inflamed. It often presents as worse pain in the morning, that gets better with time and use throughout the day.

Shin splints, or medial tibial stress syndrome, refers to pain and tenderness along or just behind the shin bone (tibia). They most commonly happen after hard exercises or repetitive activity.  This repetitive action can lead to inflammation of the muscles, tendons and thin layer of tissue covering the shin bones, causing pain.

Posterior tibial dysfunction (PTTD) is a painful condition that affects the foot and ankle.​​ The posterior tibial tendon connects your calf muscle to bones on the inside of your foot. The main purpose of the tendon is to support the arch on the inside of your foot, therefore when injured it can affect your ability to walk or perform certain lower body movements.  PTTD can be treated through nonsurgical or surgical methods.

Also known as femoroacetabular impingement (FAI); this occurs when the ball of the hip joint pinches against the socket of the hip (acetabulum). There are two main types of FAI. The first is a deformity of the femoral head (ball). It has a more oval appearance, which creates friction when the ball hits the acetabulum. The second type occurs when the acetabulum is abnormally shaped. The cup may cover the head of the femur too much, creating friction on the head/neck of the femur.

A labral tear is an injury to the tissue that holds the ball (femoral head) and socket (acetabulum) parts of the hip together. A torn hip labrum may cause pain, reduced range of motion in the hip and a sensation of the hip locking up. Labral tears are typically caused by overuse, traumatic injuries or abnormalities in the shape or alignment of the hip bones. They can generally be treated with or without surgery.

Iliotibial band syndrome is a common knee injury that usually presents with pain and/or tenderness on palpation of the lateral aspect of the knee, above the joint line and below the lateral femoral epicondyle. It is considered a non-traumatic overuse injury, often seen in runners and cyclists. It is often concomitant with underlying weakness of hip abductor muscles.

Involves irritation of the sacroiliac joint; the joint that connects the sacrum (base of the spine) to the ilium (top of the pelvis). It can often cause pain and stiffness in the lower back/buttocks and down the legs. Prolonged sitting, standing and stair climbing may exacerbate the pain. It can also commonly be felt during pregnancy.

The rotator cuff comprises four muscles and tendons that support your shoulder girdle, providing stability to the joint. Repetitive movements that strain the rotator cuff can cause damage. Another common cause of rupture is injury. Rotator cuff injuries cause pain and stiffness with raising and moving your arm.

Also known as Adhesive Capsulitis. It involves the insidious onset of stiffness and pain in the shoulder joint. Scar tissue forms within the joint capsule and the soft tissues become inflamed. It can be a long rehabilitation process, even sometimes years.

This is when hard calcium deposits form on soft tissue, in this case on tendons of the rotator cuff. The tendons then come inflamed and cause pain.

This is a group of disorders that occur when the blood vessels or nerves in the space between your clavicle (collar bone) and your first rib are compressed. This can cause shoulder and neck pain and numbness in your fingers.

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a key structure in the knee joint. It  resists forward movement of the tibia (shin bone) on the femur (thigh bone), as well as rotational loads in the knee joint. Injuries can range from small sprains to complete tears. Most commonly they occur as a non-contact injury in sports involving pivoting, or with sudden twisting movements of the knee. Common symptoms include a popping sound at the time of injury, pain, swelling and a feeling of instability.

The medial collateral ligament (MCL) is situated on the inside of the knee joint and is important for maintaining mechanical stability of the knee. MCL injuries are common and mostly occur after an impact to the outside of the knee area, whilst the foot is in a fixed position. Injuries can range from small tears to complete ruptures and are graded from 1 to 3 depending on the severity.

The meniscus is a type of cartilage in the knee joint and has two parts – medial (inner) and lateral (outer). It plays an important role in congruency and absorbing forces within the knee joint. Injuries can either be traumatic (e.g. sporting injury) or degenerative (e.g. osteoarthritis) in nature, and the most common mechanism of injury is a twisting injury on a semi-flexed limb through a weight bearing knee.

This is a broad term used for pain arising from the knee cap (patella) or from the adjacent soft tissues. It is more common in people that participate in running, jumping and squatting sports. It is mostly multifactorial and is often due to overuse/overload, biomechanical imbalances and dysfunction around the knee and other joints of the lower limb and pelvis.

Biceps tendinopathy describes pain and tenderness in the region of the biceps tendon at the front of the shoulder. The area where the biceps muscle and tendon meet is particularly vulnerable to overuse injuries, especially in individuals performing heavy lifting activities. It is rarely seen in isolation and often coexists with other pathologies of the shoulder such as rotator cuff injuries, and shoulder imbalances and instabilities.

Better described as Lateral Epicondylitis or Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy, it is considered the most common overuse injury of the elbow and is only linked to playing tennis in 5% of people that experience it. The primary cause is due to overloading forces that chronically stress the extensor muscles and tendons of the forearm causing tenderness just below the elbow on the outside. It may be caused by repetitive activities such as computer use, screwdriver use, heavy lifting, as well as racquet and throwing sports.

Medial Epicondyle Tendinopathy or “Golfers Elbow” is a tendinous overload injury involving the wrist flexor muscles. Pain is usually felt just below the inside part of the elbow, and can refer down the forearm to the wrist, occasionally into the fingers, sometimes affecting grip strength. The pathology is often seen in overhead throwing sports such as baseball, tennis, weightlifting, and occupations such as carpentry and plumbing.

This condition is characterized by a localised swelling at the back of the elbow, which is due to inflammation of the elbow bursa (a fluid filled sac that reduces friction between the elbow bone and overlying skin). This injury may be caused by direct trauma to the back of the elbow, or due to repetitive microtrauma, like constantly rubbing the elbow against a table during writing.

Pain in your jaw joint area and the muscle that control jaw movements. Symptoms can also include headaches, general jaw pain and teeth grinding.

A herniated disc is a common cause of neck pain. It is often referred to as a “slipped disc”. Pain from a herniated disc can radiate down the shoulder and arm with sensations of numbness and tingling.

Neck pain is common and can exist because of physical strain, poor posture, osteoarthritis, disc degeneration and other spinal conditions. The neck pain generally worsens when moving the neck and normal range of motion is limited.  

It is a pain in the head or the face that can be described as a pressure that is throbbing, constant, sharp or dull. Headaches can differ in location and severity and can exist for a variety of reasons.

A long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. It causes uncontrollable shaking, stiffness and difficulty with balance and coordination.

A type of dementia that affects memory, thinking and behaviors. The symptoms develop gradually over many years and eventually become more severe. 

Is a developmental disability that affects a persons muscle tone, movement and maintain balance and posture. It is the most common motor disability in childhood.

A stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures or bleeds, or when there is a blockage in the blood supply to the brain. A stroke can be fatal and the recovery and lasting effects of a stroke can differ greatly from one patient to another. 

A result of damage to the nerves located outside of the brain and spinal cord (the peripheral nerves), often causes weakness, numbness and pain, usually in the hands and feet and is often common in long-term diabetics.