Retrospective Case-Control Study on the Effect of In-Person Physical Therapy With Remote Therapeutic Monitoring on Functional Outcomes and Plan of Care Adherence Amongst Individuals With Musculoskeletal Conditions.
Timothy Marshall, Andrew Goldman, Robert Lyles and 4 others
PMID 40980535WHAT IT FOUND
Patients who used a remote exercise app alongside in-person physical therapy were more likely to reach their projected functional goals than those who attended clinic visits only.
They also showed up for more frequent weekly appointments.
Key findings
01A greater proportion of patients receiving in-person physical therapy combined with remote therapeutic monitoring achieved their discharge functional status benchmark compared to those receiving in-person therapy alone.
02The combined group demonstrated higher engagement, with a significantly greater proportion attending more than two visits per week compared to the control group.
03In the adjusted model, participation in remote therapeutic monitoring was a significant predictor of achieving the functional status benchmark, while insurance type, total visits, and pain levels were not.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study is retrospective and observational, meaning it cannot prove that the remote monitoring caused the better outcomes. Patients had to opt-in to the remote monitoring service, which introduces selection bias as those who agreed may have been more motivated or confident in their therapy from the start. Access to the required technology for remote monitoring may have excluded patients without reliable internet or devices, potentially skewing the demographic profile of the intervention group. The treatment plans and home exercise programs were not standardized or controlled by the researchers, so differences in care delivery between therapists could have influenced the results. The majority of cases involved back pain (46%), so the findings may not generalize equally to other musculoskeletal conditions.
Declared interests
Several authors are employees of Limber Health, the company associated with the remote therapeutic monitoring vendor used in the study. While the authors state these employees did not perform the data analysis or interpretation, the commercial relationship with the technology provider is a significant potential conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that remote therapeutic monitoring directly caused the improved functional outcomes. The study design cannot rule out that patients who chose to enroll in the remote program were already more engaged or motivated than those who did not.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →