South Edmonton Location
Postural assessment in Edmonton
Posture is a habit, not a diagnosis. The assessment works out which of your habits matter and what to do about them.
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What a postural assessment is
A postural assessment looks at how you hold yourself sitting, standing and moving, and at the mobility and strength that allow — or prevent — a comfortable, varied posture. The honest view from current research is that there is no single correct posture and that most ‘bad’ posture is harmless in itself; what causes problems is holding any one position for too long, and lacking the mobility or strength to get out of it. At Vertex the assessment is practical: it identifies the stiffness, weakness and habits that are contributing to your neck, back or shoulder symptoms and gives you a plan to change them.
What is assessed
Photographs and simple measurements are taken so changes can be tracked.
- Standing and sitting posture, and how much it varies over time
- Thoracic spine and hip mobility, which limit how upright you can comfortably be
- Strength and endurance of the back, shoulder-blade and hip muscles
- Breathing pattern and rib movement
- Movement habits: how you bend, lift, reach and sit down
- Your symptoms and how they relate to positions and time spent in them
What you get
A plain explanation of what was found, what is relevant to your symptoms and what is not, and a short program: mobility work for the stiff areas, endurance work for the muscles that tire, and habits to break up long positions. The program is deliberately short so it gets done.
If you have pain now, the assessment is combined with treatment. Hands-on work for the thoracic spine and neck often gives quick relief while the exercises do the longer-term work.
Who tends to ask for it
Desk workers with a rounded upper back and forward head; teenagers whose parents are worried; people with scoliosis who want to know what they can do; and anyone who has been told their posture is the cause of their pain and wants a second, evidence-based opinion.
For scoliosis the assessment includes measuring the curve and advising on monitoring and exercise; children and adolescents with a progressing curve are referred on appropriately.
Questions people ask
Is my posture causing my pain?
Possibly, but usually indirectly. Holding any position for a long time, combined with stiffness and weak endurance, is a more likely cause than the shape of the position itself. The assessment sorts out what is actually contributing.
Can posture be corrected?
Habits, mobility and strength can be changed, and with them the posture you settle into most of the time. The aim is a body that can comfortably move between positions, not one held rigidly in a single ‘correct’ one.
Do posture braces or correctors work?
They give a short-term reminder and little else; muscles do not get stronger by being held in position by a strap. A short daily program does more.
I have scoliosis. What can physiotherapy do?
Assess and monitor the curve, address the pain and stiffness that often go with it, and teach specific exercises. Adolescents with a progressing curve are referred to a physician for imaging and bracing decisions.
Is a postural assessment covered by benefits?
Yes, as part of a physiotherapy assessment. No referral is needed and most extended health plans are direct-billed.
How long does it take?
About forty-five minutes for the assessment, including the explanation and your first exercises. Follow-ups are shorter.
Book an assessment
Vertex Physiotherapy is at 6958 76 Ave NW #205, Edmonton, AB T6B 2R2. Call (825) 525-2852 or book online. No referral is needed. Direct billing to most extended health plans, WCB and Section B claims.