A group of physical therapist researchers from the Army-Baylor University Doctoral Fellowship in Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy at Brooke Army Medical Center, a U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence, or MEDCoE, Graduate School hospital-based program, published a study in the New England Journal of Medicine, or NEJM.
U.S. Army Col. Norman “Skip” Gill, PT, D.Sc., Deputy Commandant, MEDCoE, was part of the team that published a randomized controlled trial on treatment of knee osteoarthritis, or OA. The goal was to compare physical therapy to steroid injections in patients with knee OA. Patients with arthritis of the knee who underwent physical therapy had less pain and disability at one year than patients who received a steroid injection. Data for the study was collected since 2015.
“Knee OA is not just a retiree problem,” said Gill. “It is prevalent in the U.S. Army across Active Duty, Reserve, and National Guard Soldiers in the mid-to-senior grades after years of high impact activities and lower extremity injuries. It directly impacts the readiness of these Soldiers. The findings of our research highlight the importance of changing the conversation between providers and their patients to ensure patients with knee OA are offered the high benefit, low risk physical therapy used in this clinical trial.”
It is an enormous feat to publish an article in any peer-reviewed journal, and it is a “moon-shot” to publish in NEJM which is the pinnacle of peer reviewed journals and rejects over 95% of the submitted manuscripts. Publishing an article in NEJM is a landmark professional feat for any scholar, and to have a group of PTs publish in this journal is simply unheard of in the PT profession, as NEJM mainly publishes physician research. NEJM only publishes the highest quality, most rigorously conducted research with the greatest impact upon medical care. It truly leads the world in academic medicine.
Along with Col. Gill the full research team members are retired U.S. Army Col. Gail Deyle DSc PT, the lead author, retired U.S. Army Maj. Dan Rhon DSc PT, Lt. Col. Ben Hando DSc PT, U.S. Air Force, retired U.S. Army Maj. Evan Petersen DSc PT, retired U.S. Army Maj. Chris Allen DSc PT, and retired U.S. Army Col. Stephen Allison PhD PT. Read the full NEJM article at https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1905877?query=featured_home
To learn more about the Army-Baylor University Doctoral Physical Therapy program please visit https://www.baylor.edu/graduate/pt/.
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