What to Expect
At your first appointment it is important that we develop an understanding of all facets of your headache problem.
You will be asked to fill out some forms prior to seeing the physiotherapist, so please consider arriving a few minutes early to ensure you are seen on time.
The assessment with the physiotherapist will take approximately 45 minutes, and includes an extensive interview and then a physical assessment of your neck, posture and upper back.
The interview gives you an opportunity to describe your typical headache, the history and factors that can effect it. We will ask some specific questions to help us determine whether your problem is one we can help with, and to help guide our treatment.
Physical assessment will include a series of tests and manoeuvres to give us a clear understanding of what the problems are. This may include:
Although we piece together all parts of your assessment to give us the information we need, the palpation of the upper neck can be a very insightful part of the examination.
If we find tightness at a specific level of your neck, and stretching this segment temporarily reproduces your headache, but lessens as we sustain the stretch it, it is usually a very good prognostic sign for manual therapy treatment.
Additionally, finding deficits in the strength testing can also be telling. Retraining the deep neck muscles in the neck to restore optimal function can also be a crucial component in the long term success of therapy.
You will be asked to fill out some forms prior to seeing the physiotherapist, so please consider arriving a few minutes early to ensure you are seen on time.
The assessment with the physiotherapist will take approximately 45 minutes, and includes an extensive interview and then a physical assessment of your neck, posture and upper back.
The interview gives you an opportunity to describe your typical headache, the history and factors that can effect it. We will ask some specific questions to help us determine whether your problem is one we can help with, and to help guide our treatment.
Physical assessment will include a series of tests and manoeuvres to give us a clear understanding of what the problems are. This may include:
- Assessing the resting posture of your head, neck, upper back and shoulder blades
- Measuring range of movement of your neck and upper back
- Palpating the neck joints and muscles
- Testing vertebral arteries
- Testing ligament stability
- Measuring neck motor control and strength using a pressure biofeedback device
- Completing headache or pain questionnaires
Although we piece together all parts of your assessment to give us the information we need, the palpation of the upper neck can be a very insightful part of the examination.
If we find tightness at a specific level of your neck, and stretching this segment temporarily reproduces your headache, but lessens as we sustain the stretch it, it is usually a very good prognostic sign for manual therapy treatment.
Additionally, finding deficits in the strength testing can also be telling. Retraining the deep neck muscles in the neck to restore optimal function can also be a crucial component in the long term success of therapy.