Dr. Laura Mannering DPT, OCS, Dip MDT
orthopedic-specialist physical therapy for spine & extremities
reliable, efficient diagnosis & treatment prioritizing movement & education
average of 6 visits
Superior Customer Service
I am the only person patients deal with from
start to finish. There are no double bookings, assistants, aides, appointments with other clinicians, or administrative staff. Appointments are simple to schedule, and convenient appointment times are available. Correspondence is replied to in a timely
manner. I can be reached easily via phone
and email. There are no busy waiting rooms
and no hidden costs. My goal is to
reach your goals as efficiently as possible, providing reliable, ethical care and great customer service.
Focus on Movement & Education
My main focus is teaching patients how
to manage their own health in order to
minimize the need for medical care in
both the short and long term. Orthopedic management typically entails regularly performing specific exercises as well as making any necessary lifestyle modifications. Manual therapy is employed when necessary. I instruct patients how to measure the status of their improvement as well as monitor for and prevent recurrence. I prioritize movement and education over passive modalities due to
better overall outcomes.
Orthopedic Expertise
In addition to my Ivy League bachelor’s and
top-ranked clinical doctorate, I am board-certified in orthopedic physical therapy and diplomaed in McKenzie’s mechanical diagnosis and therapy (MDT). Patients often see results which “standard” physical therapy and other types of orthopedic care
failed to achieve. In many instances,
the diagnosis and treatment
I provide prevent the use of unnecessary – as well as costly and riskier – imaging, injections, medications, and surgeries. The average number
of visits needed is 6, though it ranges
from 1-10, rarely exceeding 10 visits.
Education
Bachelor of Arts, University of Pennsylvania
Doctorate of Physical Therapy, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Certifications & Memberships
Diploma in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (Dip MDT)
Board-certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy (OCS)
APTA Certified Clinical Instructor
Member, The McKenzie Institute USA
About Me
Following high school at Madeira in McLean, Virginia, I received my BA in economics and Spanish from Penn, spending one year studying in Spain. A big component of my college experience was athletics – rowing for one year on the novice crew team, playing for the club soccer and tennis teams, and founding and running the club basketball team. I subsequently worked in Asia for several years and served for one year with AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers In Service To America). I moved to Miami in 2007 to pursue my DPT and have been diagnosing and treating orthopedic disorders as a doctor of physical therapy for fourteen years in Florida and the DC area.
About three years into my physical therapy career I was drawn to Robin McKenzie‘s work regarding biomechanics because I observed excellent results implementing his orthopedic testing and treatment strategies. By adding these to my existing orthopedic framework, I noticed significantly better outcomes personally with a low back disc herniation that had plagued me for many years as well as with my patients.
By including McKenzie’s repeated movement testing, I find I can better assess how the musculoskeletal system works holistically and get to the root cause of patients’ disorders. For instance, sometimes the disorder is distant from the site of symptoms, such as a problem in the low back creating only right knee pain. I also find that most patients will respond in six or fewer visits with
1-2 very specific movements.
Doctors of physical therapy may seek board certification in one of ten specialties. I achieved board certification in orthopedic physical therapy in 2017. With regard to McKenzie’s mechanical diagnosis and therapy, I attained my certification in 2016 and then my diploma in 2021.
I argue that because other clinicians do not include McKenzie’s principles as part of their orthopedic framework, they are missing a huge piece of the neuromusculoskeletal puzzle. For diagnosing, most clinicians rely solely on images and orthopedic special tests (OSTs) which only take a few seconds or minutes. My orthopedic evaluation may certainly include those tests, but is distinct due to the thoroughness of movement testing. (The musculoskeletal system is the movement system after all!) Since effective care starts with the right diagnosis, enlisting the correct testing is paramount. The treatment that matches the diagnosis is then applied.
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