Orthopedic/Neurosurgery and Physical Therapy clinics treat bones, brains and more

  • Published
  • By Gina Marie Giardina
  • 88 Air Base Wing Public Affairs
WRIGHT PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  During a basketball game, an Airman jumps to block a shot, swats the ball into the bleachers, but comes down on the shooter's foot and twists her ankle. Within a few minutes, her ankle is eggplant purple.

While lifting weights at Dodge Gym, an Airman increases his weight for the bench press, pushes the bar up, but feels a painful pull in his shoulder. He goes home, ices it, but the pain won't go away.

In early spring, an Airman, who is practicing with his baseball team, makes a great catch in the outfield. When he plants his foot to throw the ball home, he hears a pop in his knee and falls to the ground.

These are just a few examples of common injuries that are diagnosed and treated in the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery and Physical Therapy clinics at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Medical Center.

Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic

According to Master Sgt. Terri Woods, the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic flight chief, the clinic is staffed by 31 active duty personnel, contractors and civilians. There are also 15 doctors who cover specialties including general orthopedics, sports medicine, hand, spine, neurosurgery and podiatry.

"Ortho takes care of the extremities," said Woods. "So shoulders to your fingers--hips to your toes. We do total joints--we replace the knees; we replace the hips; we do shoulder replacements. The Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic treats every part of the musculoskeletal system, including the brain. Also, our podiatrists see fractures of the feet and toes, bunions, amputations, plantar fasciitis, just to name a few."

Simply pulling the string to start a lawnmower can result in a shoulder injury, but injuries are sometimes age-specific.

"For the older population, we do a lot of joint replacements - hips, knees, wrists, shoulders, and elbows," said Woods. "For the younger, we treat anterior cruciate ligament, meniscus, rotator cuff, labral (hip and shoulder) tears."

While age can be a factor, all Airmen lead active lifestyles. From team to individual sports, physical fitness is a large part of an Airman's life.

"For active duty personnel and students, injuries we commonly see are sports-related," said Woods. "So ACL, rotator cuff tears, labral tears, chronic ankle sprains."

While exercise is encouraged and necessary for Airmen to maintain fitness standards and overall good health, the lack of a routine can cause problems.

Staff Sgt. select Letefa Meeks, an orthopedic surgical technician, stated that Airmen don't always have a fitness routine that they follow so when PT tests come around, those Airmen suddenly start working out--overexerting themselves instead of allowing their bodies to acclimate to the workout. This causes injuries because bodies are not used to the movement.

Woods explained that the clinic also sees ankle sprains, but these are treated conservatively with rest, a brace or cast, followed by physical therapy. If all that fails, then surgery is recommended.

But the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic isn't just about bones and brains. They also have a shot clinic that is open on Fridays and offers viscosuplementation and platelet-rich plasma injections. Viscosuplementation is an injection of a gel-like substance into a joint for the treatment of osteoarthritis. Woods said that the shot clinic sees an average of 30 to 40 patients every Friday.

Patients usually need a referral to be seen in the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic, but those referrals can come from many places.

"Patients can be referred from any of the Wright Patt clinics, reserve units, the five VA hospitals in Ohio, as well as outside clinics within our area," said Woods. "Most of our traumas come from the Emergency Department."

But when a patient goes to the Orthopedic Clinic, the journey doesn't typically end there. Physical therapy is commonly used in conjunction with treatment in the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic.

Physical Therapy Clinic

The Physical Therapy Clinic, staffed by 23 military and civilian personnel, is oftentimes the next stop in a patient's journey.

Similar to the Orthopedic/Neurosurgery Clinic, the PT Clinic receives referrals from various medical professionals; however, as of June 2015, patients are now able to self-refer if the injury occurred within the past 14 days.

"Sometimes there are lengthy wait times for appointments with family providers, so this self-referral program--also called Acute Care--helps Airmen get treatment a little quicker," said Maj. Jeffrey Walker, physical medicine flight commander. "The Acute Care program was implemented specifically for acute back, knee, hip, or shoulder injuries."

According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, there are two types of injuries--acute and chronic. Examples of acute injuries are sudden or severe pain in an extremity, inability to move a joint through full range of motion, extreme weakness or tenderness in a limb, or visible dislocation of a bone. Examples of chronic injuries are experiencing pain when performing a sport or activity, a dull ache when resting, or swelling. Chronic pain--according to Maj. Walker--is pain that persists over a long period of time.

In the PT Clinic at the medical center, there are treadmills, exercise balls, an anti-gravity treadmill, and many other machines to help patients build strength or increase their range of motion after an injury or surgery.

Walker also explained that patients in need of occupational therapy are also seen in the PT Clinic. There are two occupational therapists in the clinic and these therapists help patients with exercises to accomplish everyday tasks such as getting dressed, and getting in and out of the shower, among many others.

To make a physical therapy appointment using the Acute Care (self-referral) program, call 937-522-APPT (2778).