JOSPT Insights

Sleep: we all know it's essential for function in everyday life, and plays an important role in recovery and managing musculoskeletal pain. How much did you learn about assessing and managing sleep dysfunction in your musculoskeletal degree program?

Today, Dr Mark Shepherd (Bellin College) shares practical tips to help you assess sleep, identify common sleep disorders, and incorporate behavioural strategies into your musculoskeletal rehabilitation practice.

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RESOURCES

Clinician's guide to assessing and addressing sleep dysfunction in people with musculoskeletal pain: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/josptopen.2025.0198

Spine pain and sleep study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35642567/

UK Biobank study on predictors of persistent pain: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37414898/

Systematic review on lack of sleep measures: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37259893/

APTA position paper on the PT’s role in sleep health: https://www.apta.org/apta-and-you/leadership-and-governance/policies/role-pt-apta-sleep-health

DPT students and sleep behaviours: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39425093/

The JOSPT Insights team has been on a hiatus in December. We're very pleased to say we're back and recording new episodes to share with you in 2026. We're back in your feed with new episodes from mid-January. Until then, we're sharing a couple of our most impactful episodes of 2025. Enjoy!

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Patellofemoral pain can affect anyone at any age, which mean you're likely to come across it in your clinical career. What is best practice in managing patellofemoral pain?

Today, Dr Brad Neal (Queen Mary University of London) walks us through how to apply the best research to your practice.

Dr Neal has worked for over a decade in elite sport, private and public health care settings as a specialist musculoskeletal physiotherapist. His PhD work in biomechanics has helped guide understanding of how to manage patellofemoral pain.

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RESOURCES

Best practice guide for patellofemoral pain: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39401870/

Effects of treatment for patellofemoral pain - systematic review with meta-analysis: https://www.jospt.org/doi/full/10.2519/jospt.2022.11359

Patellofemoral pain 2019 clinical practice guideline: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/jospt.2019.0302

The JOSPT Insights team has been on a hiatus in December. We're very pleased to say we're back and recording new episodes to share with you in 2026. We're back in your feed with new episodes from mid-January. Until then, we're sharing a couple of our most impactful episodes of 2025. Enjoy!

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Tune in today for the latest consensus on rehabilitation approaches for people who have had meniscus surgery.

Orthopaedic surgeons and physical therapists from Europe and the US debated the best research evidence, and brought extensive clinical experience to the table, ultimately producing a 2-part series of summary papers.

Dr Arielle Giordano (University of Delaware) was one of the physical therapy leads on the project, and today she shares the most important messages from the consensus.

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RESOURCES

EU‐US Meniscus Rehabilitation 2024 Consensus - Rehabilitation after meniscus surgery: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/josptopen.2025.0162

EU-US Meniscus Rehabilitation 2024 Consensus - Prevention, non‐operative treatment and return to sport: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/josptopen.2025.13539

Calf strains are challenging for athletes and clinicians to manage—with uncertain return to play times and risks for reinjury if they're not managed well.

Dr Brady Green (University of Notre Dame, Perth, Australia) shares his research and clinical expertise on muscle strains in elite and subelite athletes, including from his previous work in elite Australian football at the Essendon Football Club.

Today's episode launches from Dr Green's latest study of the epidemiology of calf strains, and discusses how musculoskeletal rehabilitation specialists, including sports physical therapists, can use this information to guide their practice.

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RESOURCES

Gastrocnemius muscle strain injury epidemiology: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/jospt.2025.13526

Over the past decade, the term rotator cuff–related shoulder pain (RCRSP) has gained traction as a more accurate, patient-centered way to describe shoulder pain.

In this episode, Dr Amy McDevitt (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, University of Colorado) joins Dan Chapman and Marquis Sanabrais to unpack why shifting from structural labels like impingement or tendinopathy toward RCRSP can improve both communication and care.

They discuss how imaging often fails to match symptoms, why language matters for patient engagement, and how clinicians can explain shoulder pain without over-pathologizing.

Take home messages:

1. RCRSP reflects the multifactorial nature of shoulder pain, biological, mechanical, and psychosocial.
2. Clear and non-anatomic terminology helps patients understand and buy into treatment.

3. Future research should clarify mechanisms behind exercise and refine subgroups within RCRSP.

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RESOURCES

The case for using "rotator cuff-related shoulder pain" in practice: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/jospt.2025.13405