Physical Therapy Implications for Pediatric Orthopedic Disorders of Childhood

Course Description

Orthopedic physical therapy involves the practice of correcting functional impairments of the entire musculoskeletal system. Physical therapists & Physical therapist assistants who specialize in this discipline provide services that help to restore function, improve mobility, and relieve pain while promoting overall health and fitness. Pediatric orthopedic physical therapy extends this discipline to the developmental care of children by considering their future growth. Pediatric PTs & PTAs are trained to recognize, identify, and treat a large variety of orthopedic complications and injuries. By restoring function while increasing mobility, pediatric orthopedic physical therapy helps the pediatric patient reach their maximum potential for independent function. The scope of pediatric orthopedics ranges from congenital anomalies to injuries in the older adolescent.

In this course, the normal growth and development of the pediatric musculoskeletal system will be reviewed. This will include a discussion of Spranger’s classification of disorders of morphogenesis, as well as provide a review of the components of a typical pediatric physical therapy musculoskeletal examination. Course participants will examine the characteristics and manifestations of various prenatal and postnatal pediatric orthopedic conditions and describe PT interventions relevant to the pediatric population. Finally, course participants will examine common pediatric sports injuries, including concussion management, and considerations for the young athlete.

Course Objectives

At the end of this course, the participant will be able to:

• Review normal growth and development of a child’s musculoskeletal system.
• Describe Spranger’s classification of Disorders of Morphogenesis.
• Review the components of a typical pediatric musculoskeletal examination.
• Discuss the characteristics and manifestations of various prenatal pediatric orthopedic conditions.
• Discuss the characteristics and manifestations of various postnatal pediatric orthopedic conditions.
• Describe physical therapy interventions for orthopedic disorders related to the pediatric population.
• Describe common pediatric sports injuries and considerations for the young athlete.

• Prerequisites

  None

• Educational Level

  Intermediate

• Other

  Satisfactory completion of this course will require the participant to complete a 10 question post-test with a minimum passing score of 70%.