Variables Associated with Abandoning the Manual Therapy Approach Learned in Physical Therapy School

Abstract

Numerous manual therapy backgrounds are taught during formal education and continuing education courses within the United States. Many of these approaches employ disparate philosophies for examination and treatment. The purpose of this study was to determine what variables are associated with abandoning the manual therapy approach learned in school. This study surveyed 439 Board-Certified Orthopaedic Specialists (OCS), members of the American Physical Therapy Association. Data were collected through an Internet survey and analyzed using SPSS version 12.0. Logistic regression analysis determined that increased years of experience was associated with the likelihood of abandoning one's spinal manual therapy approach learned in school. There were no variables associated with the likelihood of abandonment of a peripheral approach. Moreover, clinicians were less likely to report abandonment of an approach if their PT school emphasized the Maitland, eclectic, Osteopathic, McKenzie, Cyriax, Kaltenborn, or Paris approach to the spine. The variables that made a clinician less likely to abandon his or her peripheral manual therapy approach were that a clinician' feels that the approach is effective' with the additions of the backgrounds of Maitland, Kaltenborn, Cyriax, eclectic, Paris, or Osteopathic approach or "none." All variables with the exception of years of experience were associated with the likelihood of retaining versus abandoning one's manual therapy approach learned during formal education.