McKenzie Method

The McKenzie Method of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy is an highly effective method of assessment and treatment for spinal pain. Developed by Physiotherapist Dr. Robin McKenzie. It has been widely used all over the world for more than 35 years.
Certified physiotherapists are trained to diagnose and assess all areas of the musculoskeletal system.
Most important is initial assessment – a reliable and safe way to reach an correct diagnosis and then make the appropriate therapy plan.
Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy is a method of active patient involvement and education that is trusted and used by physiotherapists and patients all over the world for back, neck and extremity problems. This approach continues to be one of the most researched physical therapy based methods available.

Step 1 ASSESSMENT

Our MDT trained physiotherapist will start with taking a detailed history about your symptoms and how they occur. Patient maybe asked to perform certain movements and positions. How your symptoms and range of movement changes with these repeated movements provides the clinician with information that they can use to categorise your problem.

Step 2 CLASSIFICATION

Each syndrome is addressed according to its unique nature, with specific mechanical procedures, including repeated movements and sustained postures. MDT is a comprehensive classification system, and includes a smaller group of patients that cannot be classified into one of the three Syndromes, but are into the ‘Other’ Subgroup which includes serious pathologies, non-mechanical causes, true chronic pain etc.

Step 3 TREATMENT

Using the information from the assessment, the clinician will prescribe specific exercises and advice regarding postures to adopt and postures to temporarily avoid. If your problem has a more difficult mechanical presentation, a qualified MDT clinician may need to add hands-on techniques until you can self-manage. The aim is to be as effective as possible in the least number of sessions. Treatment that you can perform five or six times a day is more likely to be effective in a shorter period of time than treatment administered by the clinician once or twice per week. The emphasis is on you, the patient, being actively involved. This can minimise the number of visits to the clinic. Ultimately, most patients can successfully treat themselves when provided with the necessary knowledge and tools.

Step 4 PREVENTION

By learning how to self-treat the current problem, you gain knowledge on how to minimise the risk of recurrence. You can also rapidly deal with symptoms if they recur, putting you in control of your treatment safely and effectively. Persisting problems are more likely to be prevented through self-maintenance than by passive care.