A groundbreaking treatment for chronic knee pain has made its way across the Atlantic from the United Kingdom, Israel and Singapore—and its first stop is a Syosset physical therapy center.
One Physical Therapy, 320 Robbins Lane in Syosset, is the nation’s first certified provider of AposTherapy, a drug-free, nonsurgical knee treatment bent on relieving pain and improving mobility. AposTherapy is a personalized program of care that improves mobility and function. Based on the premise that the development and progression of knee pain depends on the natural forces that are put through knee, AposTherapy works by analyzing and manipulating these forces, thereby disrupting the viscous pain cycle.
David Lipetz, founder of One Physical Therapy and resident of Roslyn Village, said the therapy’s intent is to prevent knee replacement surgery. It works by altering the natural ground reaction forces received by the knee—it disrupts pain messages coming from the arthritic knee and enhances the functionality of the muscles surrounding around the knee, thereby preventing invasive surgery.
“We’re constantly researching innovative therapies, techniques and technologies to provide our patients with the most effective treatment options,” said Lipetz, adding that his practice has been using AposTherapy since August. “We’ve been using AposTherapy with a select group of patients and the results have been outstanding. We’ve had a diverse group of individuals benefit from AposTherapy—seniors, weekend warriors, high school athletes and others—and all have reported a marked relief of pain, improved mobility, and better quality of life.”
AposTherapy can provide relief to those suffering from knee osteoarthritis (“wear and tear” of cartilage), meniscal tears, ligament damage, patellofemoral pain syndrome (anterior knee pain), rehabilitation following knee surgery and lower back pain. The therapy centers on a computerized analysis of a patient’s gait. Using that analysis, a patented shoe-like biomechanical device is custom calibrated for each individual by a specially trained physical therapist. The patient wears these high-tech shoes instead of their regular footwear for about an hour each day during normal activity at home, work or school.
The device is able to manipulate the nervous system and disrupt pain signals that are coming from the knee by reducing pressure and at the same time, retraining the muscles to adopt a healthier walking pattern for lasting pain relief.
“The goal is to avoid surgery,” said Lipetz. “And the nice thing about Apos is that incorporating it into daily life is easy. We don’t want patients in here too long. We want them out living their lives.”
And while the results of this therapy have been largely positive, Lipetz said he is still facing an uphill battle getting more widespread acceptance of this device. As a board certified physical therapist with a naturally critical eye, he understands any skepticism one might have when looking at the device—because he too had some reservations of his own.
“I researched it, looked into it and it was intriguing,” he said, adding that it is becoming more and more of a discussion in this country’s physical therapy community.
Lipetz said that all therapists in his practice working with AposTherapy spend a significant amount of time training with the Israeli team that initially developed the device. The device is not currently covered by insurance in the U.S., but Lipetz believes that it will be covered in the future, as it is in Israel, the U.K. and Singapore.
“The insurance companies will eventually pick it up, and when they do it will be a game changer,” he said.
Lipetz said his patients are often amazed at the impact this device has on their knee pain.
“My Apos patients are the ones that are always smiling,” he said. “They see immediate changes and real relief from pain, which is the main goal.”
To find out if you are a candidate for AposTherapy, schedule an appointment at One Physical Therapy by calling 516-513-1510 or visit www.onephysicaltherapy.com. To learn more about AposTherapy, visit http://apostherapy.co.uk/en/home.
