Many perceive scans to be like the back of the high school Maths book, where all the answers are hidden. This can bring about varying experiences, depending on each person. You may be someone that is eager to get a scan and accurately diagnose your pain. You may be someone that hears the word ‘scan’ and can only think ‘they have no idea what’s wrong with me.’ This Optimal Tip will explain how scans are just another tool that we use.
When are scans helpful?
The purpose of getting a scan is to give us a deeper look into a certain area of the body. As physios, we have many assessments in our back pocket, however, they have their limitations. Scans, therefore, let us take a peek ‘under the hood’ at certain structures which are not evaluated by easily or as effectively by physical testing. The usefulness then comes about how we use that information combined with physical testing.
To know when we should do a scan, we should always ask ourselves, will the results make a difference to what we do next? In situations where results will influence the decisions afterwards, a scan is a great idea. This may be to see the extent of an injury such as an ankle sprain or muscle strain. It may be to differentiate between structures that are next to each other that can be treated differently, such as a tendon or a bursa. It may even be to determine if surgery is necessary or, in some cases, when our clinical assessment isn’t giving enough information. Regardless of the reason, if your scan results are likely to change or influence what we do to get you back to being your best, then it’s likely a great idea.
When are scans not helpful?
There are times when scan results will not change our plan, no matter the results. There are certain pain or injury presentations that have shown to have the same management plan regardless of the details. For example, ‘rotator cuff related shoulder pain’ is an umbrella term that includes many different types of shoulder pain. The advantage of grouping these together is that they all have the same treatment approach. Therefore, the scan results may not be useful in changing any further decisions.
It is also important to know that the complicated nature of pain creates a disconnection between pain and scan results. This is often difficult for many people to grasp. Let’s use lower back pain as an example. If we were to scan the back of every person in Australia, the vast majority of results would show some sort of structural change from ‘normal’. However, very little of these people would actually be experiencing pain. The complexities of pain mean that it is not always entirely driven by a physical structure. So, it’s important to look beyond the scan results and consider the entire person and their story before boiling their pain down to a single physical factor. In these cases, scans are often more harmful by giving too much information that unnecessarily confuses and stresses people instead of providing clarity and assurance.
Final call
There will always be tradeoffs to the decision to get a scan. At the end of the day, it is an investment of time, money, and energy, so we want to be confident that the results will be useful for you. Want to talk more specifically about scanning and your case? Simply book an appointment with an OHL Physiotherapist, Myotherapist or Podiatry to get to the nitty gritty of your scenario! You can book online via our Client Portal or call our friendly admin team on 9431 5955.
Surgery is often a major milestone, but it's only one part of your recovery journey. Great post-operative rehabilitation with your OHL team helps you rebuild strength, confidence, and movement so you can get back to work, exercise, sport, and the activities you love.
As she prepares for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Physio Bec reflects on the realities of training for one of the world's toughest endurance events while working full-time. In this first instalment of her Road to Kona series, she explores the importance of smart scheduling, sustainable training and prioritising recovery
Our new dance screening combines objective strength testing with dance-specific expertise to assess strength, control, and movement quality. Each 45-minute session provides dancers with a clear summary of results and a personalised strength and conditioning program designed to support safer training, improved technique, and performance goals.