Hawkes Physiotherapy Blog

Amazing! I would never have thought that when I qualified as a Physiotherapist back in 2004 that I would write anything other than my patient notes, never mind write a blog! Yet here I am on my 100th blog post! I must say that I enjoy writing them and it is great doing all the research for every post. What I have found trawling through all the latest evidence is that things change, especially since I trained from 2001 to 2004. I would strongly advise any physiotherapist to take up writing a blog because many times over I have actually disproved some of the theories and ideas that I was taught when I was at University. It seems that a decade is a long time in Physiotherapy! It's not all for me though..... Although some articles are complex and probably more tailored to my fellow professionals I hope that some are useful and helpful to my patients and the general public. If anyone wants to give me any feedback or even tell me something that they want me to cover, then I would

Achilles problems are quite common, De Jonge (2011) found that the annual incidence of Achilles tendinopathy is 2.01 per 1000 people. In runners the incidence ranges from 9.1% to 10.9% (Lopes et al 2012). Achilles ruptures typically occur in males in their 30's and 40's who play sport intermittently (Khan & Carey Smith 2010). Now we already know that Achilles tendinopathy needs to be treated with exercise based therapy and the evidence highlights that this is the most effective approach. However we always need a plan B just in case Plan A doesn’t really work or is difficult to achieve for whatever reason. To see the usual care for Achilles tendinopathy click here: http://mathewhawkesphysiotherapy.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/your-achilles-heel.html?view=flipcard So what acupuncture points are regularly used for Achilles tendinopathy? Local points: Increased collagen synthesis and reorganisation requires that at least one acupoint is anatomical