Each professional decade brings new treatment golden arrows for clinicians to embrace and implement when treating patients with persistent pain. Often these tools fall short as means for revolutionary results and are prematurely abandoned in response to misdirected utilization. Such results continue to leave clinicians wanting to understand how to incorporate sensorimotor control management strategies into managing frustrating pain cases.

This course will summarize the mechanisms responsible for different classes of persistent pain. Contemporary strategies for lumbosacral sensorimotor control (SMC) clinical management will be examined. A progressive approach to manual detection and functional examination will be discussed and practiced. The clinician will learn how to design, implement a progress a program that addresses lumbosacral neuromotor and somatosensory fundamental reactivation.

Corrective strategies will be implemented in response to functional examination findings. Integration of orthopaedic manual therapy, SMC strategies, biopsychosocial skillsets, pain science education and medical intervention will be explored as solutions for redirecting patients’ persistent pain experiences. Case studies will be discussed and incorporation of multi-strategy solutions will be examined.

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

Discuss the role of SMC strategies for managing patients with persistent lumbosacral pain.

Examine neurophysiological factors lending to recurrent and chronic sensitized pain

Summarize neural, myofascial, endocrine, biopsychosocial consequences of persistent pain experiences.

Establish the role of a neuromatrix approach for the persistent pain patient’s recovery.

Consider orthopaedic manual therapy choices for managing Source versus Cause in each patient group

Explain the structure and function of key neuromuscular components involved in lumbosacral spine control & performance.

Demonstrate dynamic manual and functional evaluation tools that are aimed at identifying SMC deficits and measuring relevant SMC responses found in patients suffering from painful lumbosacral spinal conditions.

Execute specific neuromotor and somatosensory fundamental activation strategies that serve as a foundation for recovery.

Implement corrective movement strategies that correspond with functional examination findings.

Integrate biopsychosocial management components in lumbosacral pain management