This Level 1 Course was held with 17 participants

May 31- June 1 - 2025

FYZICAL East Asheville 4 S Tunnel Rd #440,

Asheville, NC, 28805

The cost was $495

Taught by Libby Hinsley.

Identifying & Treating EDS and Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder in Physical Therapy

People with joint hypermobility syndromes, such as hypermobility spectrum disorder and hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, often present to physical therapy with a wide variety of common complaints. Many of them arrive at PT without a formal diagnosis. Unfortunately, due to some of the unique features of the hypermobile body, physiology, and nervous system, many of these patients don’t respond as expected to traditional PT approaches. They tend to experience pain flares, exercise intolerance, and slower progression than expected. Many of them report feeling worse, not better, after PT. 

This course is for physical therapists and PTA’s who want to do a better job of identifying and treating patients who have hypermobility syndromes, whether formally diagnosed or not. The course will cover background information to help participants identify this patient population and understand why they tend to need a modified approach to treatment. 

We will discuss key ways to modify our approach to PT treatment and optimize outcomes for this population, including considerations for postural training, exercise progression, pacing, nervous system regulation, and strength training.

Identifying & Treating EDS and Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder in Physical Therapy

May 31-June 1, 2025

Two Day Course Schedule (15 hours)

Day 1: May 31, 2025

08:00        Introductions and Goals (pretest)

08:30        Overview: Hypermobility and hypermobility syndromes

●    Definitions

●    Connective tissue overview

09:30        Common challenges in hEDS/HSD

●    Common musculoskeletal complaints

●    Multi-system comorbidities

11:00        Identifying hEDS/HSD in the clinic

●    Diagnostic Criteria (lab)

●    Hypermobility Assessments (lab)

●    Clinical outcome measures

12:00        Lunch

01:00         Principles for treatment Part 1: Where to Begin

●    Cultivating therapeutic rapport

●    Comorbidity management

●    Patient education & advocacy

02:00        Nervous system regulation and pain management

03:00        Hearth Math and Manual Therapy Techniques (lab)

04:30        Q&A/Discussion

05:00        End of Day One

Day 2: June 1, 2025

08:00        Reflections from Day 1

08:30        Principles for treatment Part 2: Exercise

●    Functional core progression (FCP)

●    ADaPT protocol

●    Stability training

●    Strength training modifications

09:30        Functional Core progression (lab)

10:00        Experiential sample Bendy & Badass class (lab)

12:00        Lunch

12:30        Bracing and Accommodations

01:15        Time for questions that arise during the weekend

01:45        EMR clinical construct template

02:45        Course evaluations, post-test, final Q&A

03:30        End of course