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Chad Tenney, Owner and Physical Therapist, at Utah Physical Therapy, Inc. sees everything. As the Physical Therapist for the Winter Olympic Institute of Australia and for Utah Special Olympics he sees all kinds of high-level athletes and their maladies every day.

But it's the common injuries — the most preventable ones — in everyday people that he treats most often.

"It's the headaches, sore backs, shoulders and elbows that get me," Tenney says. "We see those every day and those are the things that I want to help with."

Tenney treats the cause — not the symptoms — that means that at his practice, which has developed into a paragon for sports medicine and spinal rehabilitation, thrives on healing bodies and changing lives.

"We see it all and we treat it all," Tenney says. "It's important for people to be armed with information to help relieve stress and pain everyday."

With those in mind, Tenney offers his tips for common injuries he sees every day at his West Haven and Lehi clinic locations:

1. Headaches

"We're looking at computer screens so often now. It's hard to escape for working adults to stare at a screen for sometimes 10 hours a day, " Tenney said.

Recurring headaches are sometimes caused by muscle tension in the neck straining to look at a computer all day.

"Your body is trying to hold you in the right position and you're fighting it," Tenney said. Better posture and properly aligned shoulders can alleviate constant headaches.

2. Sore back

Often, Tenney says patients come into his clinic complaining of a sore back. Myriad reasons can contribute to a sore back.

"It could be a joint, disc or a muscle issue," Tenney says.

If trauma hasn't contributed to a sore or stiff back, Tenney suggests a range of treatments that consist of muscle development or stretching to increase range of motion and stability around the area.

3. Tennis elbow

Tenney says tendonitis, "tennis elbow" or inflamed tendons, is a common injury that many of his patients seek treatment for.

"Those muscles are trying to work so hard for some reason. There's some imbalance in our motion or what we're doing," Tenney says.

Treating Tennis elbow could be as simple as finding the imbalance, treating the cause to the pain. It may include rest, mobilization or a regimen of stretching and physical therapy to increase range of motion and health in the inflamed areas.

4. Carpal tunnel syndrome

When it comes to a common injury that most people will suffer from in their lives, Tenney looks to cure the cause — not the symptom.

"We're always taking a pain med, getting an injection or something like that. That's OK, but often it doesn't fix anything. What we're looking for is a lasting solution that will get to the root of the cause," he says.

Tenney advises his patients to adapt their postures and seating position to take direct impact off the joints in the hands and wrists that can be inflamed and damaged from carpal tunnel syndrome.

5. Rotator cuff

For torn rotator cuffs from constant work or golf, tennis or myriad sports, Tenney works first on repairing damaged tissue and keeping the joint from stiffening.

"There's some bio-mechanical issue causing this. Our body is the healthiest when it's running efficiently — it wants to do that," he says.

Stretching is key early on, Tenney says. After a careful, monitored regimen program to increase range of motion, Tenney works overtime to strengthen muscles around the shoulder to prevent further injury.

6. Sore knees

For the sometimes-runner and triathletes in us all, bad knees and sore legs are inevitable. Tenney works with casual athletes to solve issues like bad knees all the time.

"Getting that body back into alignment is key here," he says. Working quads and hips into harmony with each other can avoid common knee pain.

"It's about developing a specialized program for each individual to reduce pain and maximize capability," he added.

Utah Physical Therapy, Inc. is located in West Haven (4640 S. 3500 West) and Lehi at (230 N. 1200 East, Suite 103) and treats all patients, from high-level athletes to work-related injuries. Chad Tenney has been a physical therapist for more than 15 years in Oregon and Utah. He is a Board Certified Orthopedic Specialist. David Butler received his doctorate in Physical Therapy from Northern Arizona University and is also a board certified orthopedic specialist. For more information about Utah Physical Therapy, Inc. go to UtahPhysicalTherapy.com or call 801-689-0200.