A 52-year-old recreational runner presents with insidious on…

A 52-year-old recreational runner presents with insidious onset of plantar heel pain that is worst with the first steps in the morning and after prolonged standing. During the physical examination, the physical therapist palpates along the plantar aspect of the calcaneus and notes pain reproduction. Which of the following examination findings would BEST support a diagnosis of plantar heel pain?

A 75-year-old male is referred to physical therapy (PT) from…

A 75-year-old male is referred to physical therapy (PT) from his primary care physician. His chief complaint includes bilateral neck pain and occasional numbness and tingling into both arms. With further examination, it is determined the patient has noticed a change in his gait with a loss of balance, clumsiness with his hands and fingers including more difficulty feeding himself and buttoning his shirts in the last 2 months, and hyperreflexia in the upper and lower extremities. Which diagnosis should the PT be most concerned about?

A patient lies supine at the edge of the treatment table, br…

A patient lies supine at the edge of the treatment table, bringing one knee toward the chest while allowing the other leg to hang freely off the edge. The physical therapist observes the position of the hanging thigh in relation to the ground to assess muscle length. Which muscle’s flexibility is the physical therapist primarily assessing during this test?

The examining physical therapist is assessing a patient with…

The examining physical therapist is assessing a patient with low back pain. The 55-year-old male patient reports his pain as tearing, constant, and throbbing in the lumbar spine. The patient’s medical history includes smoking, hypertension, obesity, and hypercholesterolemia. An extensive examination performed by the PT was not able to reproduce his symptoms in the low back.  What differentia diagnosis should the PT be most suspicious of?