By Kylie Blanchard

Have you been hampered by an injury that just doesn’t heal? Has an ache, strain or twinge appeared in a muscle or joint causing you pain and discomfort? Have you tried treatments that just haven’t made your condition better? If this sounds familiar, physical therapy may be a treatment you should consider.

“Physical therapy is a practice where we evaluate injuries or physical limitations and assess them,” says Donna Hartze, MPT, physical therapist at AIM Physical Therapy. “Then we help people regain their health.”

Hartze has been practicing physical therapy for 13 years and says this type of treatment is used for a wide range of people. “Physical therapy is very broad and there are a lot of different areas in which physical therapists are employed,” she says. “We treat everyone from tiny babies to the elderly.”

The type of conditions treated by physical therapists also varies greatly. “People often think of going to a physical therapist after a major injury requiring a lot of treatment,” says Hartze. “Sometimes people don’t think to go to the physical therapist for minor issues such as wrist or back pain.”

Hartze says physical therapy is used to treat many orthopedic issues and sports injuries, but the practice is also used in cardiac and stroke rehabilitation and the treatment of neurological disorders, like multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease, and traumatic brain injuries.

At AIM Physical Therapy, the therapists treat many conditions including: low back and neck pain; sports injuries; jaw pain (TMJ); orthopedic injuries to the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles; and foot pain. In addition, the facility also provides spine rehabilitation services, hand therapy, custom orthodics, work injury management, work site assessments and functional capacity evaluations.

However, notes Hartze, physical therapists often do have focus areas. “At AIM, we do mostly orthopedic out-patient therapy and neurological therapy,” she says. “I also work with individuals with chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia.”

She notes the reasons physical therapists can tackle a wide array of conditions is because of their broad understanding of how injuries and conditions affect the movement of the body. “Physical therapists have an extensive amount of training and extensive knowledge of how the body works,” says Hartze.

Patricia Decker suffered from severe tendonitis in her thumbs and was unable to bend them because of stiffness and swelling. “I had mentioned my problem to a couple of professionals and they told me to wrap my thumbs and not use them,” she says.

Decker was slated for surgery to cut the tendons in her thumbs in the hopes of regaining their mobility. “Something in me said, ‘I don’t want to have surgery,’” she says. “I just could not accept they would be cutting into my thumbs.”

A chance meeting with Hartze soon changed her treatment plan and her outlook on recovery. “Donna walked into the office I worked in and she asked me about my thumbs,” Decker says, adding she was encouraged by Hartze to try physical therapy.

“What Donna told me when I started therapy was ‘move it or lose it,” she adds. “Week after week the therapist worked on my thumbs and now they move.” Decker spent two months doing physical therapy at AIM and now continues the exercises she learned on her own. Most importantly, she was able to avoid surgery.

“I was very, very surprised at the treatment and very pleased with the results,” says Decker. “I am so pleased with finding the right care.”

Now one of the first treatments she tries when it comes to muscle and joint problems is physical therapy. “Whenever I have a problem, I call AIM and Donna works with me.”

Hartze notes depending on the type of insurance an individual carries, they may need a doctor’s referral to receive physical therapy services. However, she adds, most Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota plans do not require a referral. “It is important to check with your insurance provider prior to making an appointment,” says Hartze.

One of the greatest advantages of using physical therapy as a treatment method is the unique approach used for various injuries or conditions, notes Hartze. “We can get people treated quickly. We develop goals and work with the patient to get them better in a short amount of time.”

AIM Physical Therapy focuses on providing the latest and most advanced treatment options for a variety of injuries and conditions. For additional information call 701-258-7730 or visit www.aimpt.net.