Research Proposal- Benefits of Physical Therapy for Lower Extremity Injuries
Physical therapy is an umbrella therapeutic intervention used in managing diverse musculoskeletal injuries. It encompasses exercise, guided movements such as massage, and physical-stimuli-based therapies such as cold and heat application (Zhang et al., 2023). Depending on the patient’s manifestations and type of injury, different strata of physical therapy can be applied. These include vestibular rehabilitation, orthopedic physical therapy, neurological physical therapy, and pediatric physical therapy among others (Skwiot et al., 2021). Regardless of the type used, physical therapy is effective in managing different ailments and pathological conditions. Patients with recurrent muscular and skeletal injuries, mobility loss secondary to joint and muscle dysfunctionality and injuries, chronic pain exacerbation, and chronic conditions such as multiple sclerosis can benefit from physical therapy (Warutkar et al., 2022). This further highlights its significance in managing musculoskeletal injuries.
Lower extremity injuries are one of the musculoskeletal health compromises that can be managed exclusively using physical therapy. It often results in significant mobility restrictions and debilitating pain. Lower extremity pain is prevalent among athletes but can also affect other populations (Peluso et al., 2022). Comprehensive management of lower extremity injuries utilizes physical therapy, corrective surgeries, pain management modalities, and nerve repair and revascularization procedures to improve functional mobility and ease pain (George & Goode, 2020). Physical therapy maintains effectiveness in managing lower extremity pain (Papalia et al., 2020). The use of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries has been shown to improve clinical outcomes for patients with these types of injuries (Pallister et al., 2021). They have also been associated with significant cost savings as they reduce recurrences and foster complete healing (Whittaker & Roos, (2019). For this reason, the use of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries is warranted. This paper utilizes a systematic review methodology to analyze the beneficial effects of using physical therapy in managing lower extremity pain.
Methodology
Research Methodology
The study will utilize a systematic review methodology to explore the benefits of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries. Systematic reviews allow comprehensive analysis and synthesis of available data to answer the research question (Sataloff et al., 2021). In this respect, the research studies that will be utilized to answer the research question will be located from reputable databases such as PubMed, EMBASE, and CINAHL. The articles that meet the currency, accuracy, relevancy, authority, and purpose criteria will be selected for the study. Systematic review methodology was selected because of its ability to give definitive answers to the clinical question. It summarizes vast research and relatable studies, thus allowing it to address the clinical question under consideration comprehensively. Systematic review methodologies also eliminate the need for human participation and the subsequent process and costs that are otherwise incurred when human participants are involved in research. These include the financial and human resource costs required to recruit participants, provisions of informed consent, and other logistical costs that would have been mobilized during data collection processes. Ranganathan (2019) further retorts that systematic review methodologies are sometimes preferred due to their ability to reduce research bias. It is for these reasons that this methodology was selected. By synthesizing and analyzing findings from other studies on the beneficial effects of physical therapy, the study can effectively elucidate the benefits of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries.
Systematic review involves the synthesis of available research. The initial step in this research will be to formulate a clinical question. In this study, the clinical question that will be used for the review process is whether physical therapy is beneficial in managing lower extremity injuries. Relevant and purposeful studies will then be identified from reputable databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane, and EMBASE. The identified studies will be appraised against the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and those that meet the inclusion criteria will be used to answer the clinical question.
Sampling Protocols
The target population for this research is persons with lower extremity injuries. Research studies that detail the beneficial effects of physical therapy on managing lower extremity injuries will be synthesized, and their findings will be used to answer the research question. The research articles used will be located systematically using specific search terms such as “physical therapy,” benefits of physical therapy,” and the advantages of physical therapy. Boolean operators “and” and “OR” will be applied to refine the searches and narrow down to the most applicable search results This sampling technique is more applicable to this research methodology as it allows the elucidation of most relevant articles. It is also easy to use. The articles that will be included in the study are those that are relevant to the clinical question, peer-reviewed, and published in the last ten years. The studies selected must also have used experimental and quasi-experimental research designs to inform their findings.
Data Collection
Data will be extracted from the selected research articles. For each of the articles selected, information on the purpose of the study, the author of the study and their academic credentials, the research design used, and the findings will be obtained. This will give insight into the credibility of the articles as well as their authority and accuracy in addressing the research question. Findings from each study will then be analyzed.
Data Analysis
Findings from each study will be assessed using a rating system developed by Gusenbauer & Haddaway, (2020). This assessment system allows a comprehensive evaluation of diverse study methods and their findings on the beneficial effects of physical therapy in the management of lower extremity injuries. The rating systems consider characteristics such as the sample size, participants’ characteristics, description of the interventions used in the research, and outcome validity to rate the articles. The articles with higher ratings and meet the eligibility criteria will be used to address the clinical question. In this respect, these findings will be further synthesized and summarized. Detailed information on the benefits of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries will then be elucidated and outlined.
Validity
Systematic review methodologies are considered a high level of evidence research. This methodology draws its findings from existing studies and thus maintains high validity and reliability. The search process will be optimized using specific and relevant search terms to ensure that the study is highly reliable and valid. The data collection and analysis processes will also be rigorous to ensure that the data collected and used to address the research question are accurate and are an actual representation of the primary findings in the articles used. Simple linear regression models will further be used to ascertain whether the findings are consistent with the predicted outcomes. This way, the research methodology will be able to maintain a high validity.
A potential ethical consideration during this study borders on veracity and bias elimination. During the search process, the articles selected must be those that meet the eligibility criteria. The search process will be automated, and the articles will be selected strictly based on their relevance in answering the research question. The selected articles will be rated using a well-established tool, ensuring that those used to inform the research findings are not biased. Veracity will be guaranteed by ensuring that the findings are strictly obtained from the synthesized studies.
Conclusion
Lower extremity injuries are a common health compromise in athletes and other populations. These injuries result in significant disturbances in functional mobility and debilitating pain. Physical therapy remains a mainstay modality in the comprehensive management of lower extremity injuries. These interventions utilize diverse techniques to alleviate pain and improve functional mobility for persons with lower extremity injuries. These interventions have been associated with significant cost savings in healthcare. The study seeks to elucidate the beneficial effects of physical therapy in managing lower extremity injuries. Findings from this research can reaffirm the benefits of lower extremity injuries as a therapeutic intervention of choice in the management of lower extremity injuries. It provides a better health and wellness guarantee as it ensures pain relief and can significantly improve the functional mobility of persons with lower extremity injuries. Further studies are warranted to ascertain the position of these therapeutic modalities in the comprehensive management of lower extremity injuries and other musculoskeletal injuries.
References
George, S. Z., & Goode, A. P. (2020). Physical therapy and opioid use for musculoskeletal pain management: Competitors or companions? PAIN Reports, 5(5). https://doi.org/10.1097/pr9.0000000000000827
Gusenbauer, M., & Haddaway, N. R. (2020). Which academic search systems are suitable for systematic reviews or meta-analyses? Evaluating retrieval qualities of Google Scholar, PubMed, and 26 other resources. Research Synthesis Methods, 11(2), 181–217. https://doi.org/10.1002/jrsm.1378
Pallister, I., Handley, G. J., Maggs, S., Davies, A.-M., Kyle, A., Bodger, O., & Dafydd, H. (2021). Measuring recovery after open lower limb fractures: Combined objective functional tests and global perceived recovery outperform narrower metrics and a standard generic patient-reported outcome measure. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12891-021-04356-9
Papalia, G. F., Papalia, R., Diaz Balzani, L. A., Torre, G., Zampogna, B., Vasta, S., Fossati, C., Alifano, A. M., & Denaro, V. (2020). The effects of physical exercise on balance and prevention of falls in older people: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 9(8), 2595. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm9082595
Peluso, R., Hesson, J., Aikens, J., & Bullock, M. (2022). An update on physical therapy adjuncts in orthopedics. Arthroplasty Today, 14, 163–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.artd.2022.02.013
Ranganathan, P. (2019). Understanding research study designs. Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine, 23(S4), 0–0. https://doi.org/10.5005/jp-journals-10071-23314
Sataloff, R. T., Bush, M. L., Chandra, R., Chepeha, D., Rotenberg, B., Fisher, E. W., Goldenberg, D., Hanna, E. Y., Kerschner, J. E., Kraus, D. H., Krouse, J. H., Li, D., Link, M., Lustig, L. R., Selesnick, S. H., Sindwani, R., Smith, R. J., Tysome, J., Weber, P. C., & Welling, D. B. (2021). Systematic and other reviews: Criteria and complexities. Journal of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, 50(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40463-021-00527-9
Skwiot, M., Śliwiński, Z., Żurawski, A., & Śliwiński, G. (2021). Effectiveness of physiotherapy interventions for injury in ballet dancers: A systematic review. PLOS ONE, 16(6). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0253437
Warutkar, V., Gulrandhe, P., Morghade, S., Krishna Kovela, R., & Qureshi, M. I. (2022). Physiotherapy for multiple sclerosis patients from early to transition phase: A scoping review. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.30779
Whittaker, J. L., & Roos, E. M. (2019). A pragmatic approach to prevent post-traumatic osteoarthritis after sport or exercise-related joint injury. Best Practice & Research Clinical Rheumatology, 33(1), 158–171. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.berh.2019.02.008
Zhang, S., Gu, M., Zhang, T., Xu, H., Mao, S., & Zhou, W. (2023). Effects of exercise therapy on disability, mobility, and quality of life in the elderly with chronic low back pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13018-023-03988-y
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Question 
The Research Proposal is the Final Project for this course. Please read the following instructions carefully.
Please make sure you refer to the APA 7 resources on the main page of the course to support your formatting, cover page, references page, and abstract. Remember that the entire proposal should be double-spaced per APA 7 guidelines.
The methodology section of your research proposal outlines how you plan to conduct your research. This section covers various aspects of research, such as collecting data, the statistical analysis or observations, or interviews you will conduct, the type of participant you will recruit for your study, and the overall procedures you will follow. The methods section should describe the process that will convert your hypothesis/topic/research question into a research study.
Research Proposal- Benefits of Physical Therapy for Lower Extremity Injuries
The Methodology Section of Your Research Proposal Should Include:
a) An introduction section of two paragraphs (six to seven robust sentences each) about your hypothesis, research topic, and why it is important to study – use sources in the APA 7 format.
b) A research methods section that explains your research methodology, why you selected this method, and why it is most appropriate for the type of research proposal you are developing. In this section you want to state your research methods selection, why you selected it, and explain the protocols associated with this methodology. You will include the type (qualitative or quantitative) and the specifics around the type (case study, phenomenology experimental, or survey design – these are just examples to clarify the depth of the information you will provide). You must include in-text citations to support what you are writing and demonstrate the validity of your decision-making. This section should be at least two to three pages.
c) Sampling Protocols – this section will explain your sampling selection and procedures. What are the research target population and the most appropriate sampling strategy? Refer to the textbook to support you in decision-making. Quantitative research uses random sampling and qualitative research uses purposeful sampling. Select your sampling and justify your decision-making. What are the criteria that your sample must meet and why? How is this related to your hypothesis or research questions? This section should be at least one page long.
d) Data Collection – This section explains your data collection protocols. What kind of data are you collecting and how? This will be determined greatly by your research design/methodology. Explain this in detail, justifying your decisions by using in-text citations. This section is generally about one page and a half.
e) Data Analysis – This section explains your data collection process. Be specific, and make sure that the data analysis is appropriate for the type of data you are collecting. If you are developing a qualitative research proposal, interviews will be your major data collection source. You will have to transcribe the interviews, code the interviews, organize those codes into descriptive units, and formulate major themes (which is the typical data analysis protocol for qualitative research using phenomenology). If you are testing a hypothesis (quantitative), you will have to collect a specific amount of data using surveys, pulling data from primary sources, databases, etc. and use statistical analysis such as t-test to compare the means of two groups. These are simple examples to clarify the ideas for you. However, you must develop the analysis section according to the appropriate type of analysis for your research design. This must be explained in detail with in-text citations and in future tense. Remember this is a proposal for future use. This section should be about two to three pages long.
f) Validity – How valid is your methodology? Explain and cite sources to verify your procedures. This includes ethical considerations (one page long).
g) Conclusion. One half of a page to conclude your research proposal.