CONCUSSION MANAGEMENT CONfERENCE The University of Saskatchewan is holding a Concussion Management Conference in Saskatoon, Sk. Friday April 26 and Saturday, April 27, 2013. Friday evening keynote speaker is Tim Fleiszer, four-time CFL Grey Cup Champion, now with Sport Legacy Institute!! Saturday keynote speakers are Dr. Micky Collins, PhD Clinical Psychologist, Director of the University of Pittsburgh Sport Medicine Center, and Dr. Karen McAvoy, PhD Clinical Psychologist at Rocky Mountain Children’s Hospital. The partners in this event are University of Saskatchewan Huskie Athletics, Sport Medicine and Science Council of Saskatchewan, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health’s ABI/SGI Partnership Project, ThinkFirst Canada and Continuing Physical Therapy Education. The conference information and registration form for the agenda and speaker bios are available at www.usask.ca/cpte/ THIRD BIENNIAL CONfERENCE ON BRAIN InjURY IN CHILDREN The Centre for Brain and Behaviour at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto will be hosting its Third Biennial Conference on Brain Injury in Children at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Toronto from July 9-13, 2013. The SickKids Centre for Brain and Behaviour is a virtual assembly of areas within the Paediatric Neurosciences, both internal and external to SickKids. Its core business is the creation of a seamless integration of clinical, research and educational activities. The Centre is fluid but is defined by interactions, collaborations and the implementation of strategic initiatives by its diverse members. The Centre’s mission is to advance the integration of research, clinical care, education, and outreach to improve awareness of, as well as health, quality of life, and well being of children everywhere with disorders of the brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerve, and muscle. As Dcs may encounter children with brain injuries of varying etiologies in their clinics, the Centre is a resource for up-to-date information and research on health implications, co-morbidities, etc, experienced by children living with these injuries. Topics will include Guidelines for the Acute Medical Management of Severe Traumatic Brain Injury in Children: The Evidence, NFL and Concussion in Sport: Lessons Learned, Prevention of Traumatic Brain Injury: ThinkFirst, Concussion in Children and Youth: Diagnostic Indicators of Recovery and more. For more information about this conference, please visit www.sickkids.ca/brainnetwork/ Day1.aspx 2013 CMCC RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM Dcs are invited to the 2013 Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) Research Symposium titled Specialized patient management: women’s health, geriatrics, paediatrics. This event will be held on October 26 and 27 at the CMCC campus in Toronto. The biennial CMCC Symposium brings together the brightest minds and latest findings in chiropractic research. This two-day conference will feature speakers from across North America, hands-on breakout sessions, expert panels, discussion groups and plenary lectures. Stay tuned for more information at www.cmcc.ca/symposium. ADAPTED YOGA fOR BACK PAIN Finally, yoga designed specifically for back pain! The Yoga Back Clinic – providing structured rehabilitative yoga in small class sizes – is opening in April 2013 in downtown Toronto. Research from Harvard Medical School (2009) and the University of York (2012) shows that an adapted form of yoga can have substantial benefits for back pain. But, this is true only if the yoga is done correctly. The wrong positions, poor quality supervision in large classes, or pushing it too far, can have adverse effects. The developers of the Yoga Back Clinic wanted to bring this specialized yoga, in smaller class sizes, into line with professional healthcare providers. It is the clinic’s common-sense belief that people help themselves most frequently and effectively when doing something that they like. The clinic’s founder, Tom Barwell, had experienced problems with back pain. Although he liked working with the health care professionals he visited, he wasn’t finding that he experienced the relief from back pain that he needed. As well, he was constantly given the regular sheet of home care exercises but, like many people, didn’t feel comfortable (in fact didn’t even like) doing these exercises at home! With these experiences in mind, he began looking for another solution for himself and for other sufferers of back pain. “To me,” says Barwell, “it wasn’t just a matter of finding a great healthcare professional to help me – that wasn’t enough. It was finding a movement modality that was structured, safe and affordable enough for me between sessions. But more than that, I wanted an inviting, accessible place to go to. I didn’t like doing exercises on my own at home, and didn’t feel safe going to a gym or normal yoga studio. At the same time, I knew I had to do something!” After researching the most effective and affordable solutions, he decided to create his own clinic. The result? A stand-alone yoga clinic that works in concert with other healthcare professionals. Three yoga levels are available at the clinic: gentle, intermediate, and open. The first two are in classes limited to 12 people and run by instructors with years of rehabilitation experience and a blend of physiotherapy and kinesiology training. Everyone who enters these classes is assessed by a physiotherapist (PT) and the classes are overseen by that same PT. This results in a highly structured environment as well as in a treatment plan that is covered by insurance plans. The “open” level is a maintenance class, and is either for graduates of the other two classes, or for people – most likely with previous back problems – who want to work on prevention, rather than cure. Along with qualified Pts, the clinic also has an experienced RMT on staff and a Registered Dietitian. In addition, physiotherapy- recommended back products, yoga mats, and clothing are available for purchase. But neither back pain, nor yoga, is all yang. The Yoga Back Clinic offers a healthy dose of yin, too. Clinic staff also concentrates on the meditative aspects of yoga, taking our stressful and sedentary lifestyles seriously to provide a very credible movement-based therapy for backs. For more information, visit www.yogabackclinic.com. NAALT CONfERENCE HIGHLIGHTS Special report by Dr. Fernanda Saraga. Concussions, soft tissue injuries, bone fractures and pain. You would think I am describing an Emergency Room filled with injured patients, but in fact these were some of the topics presented at the 12th North American Association of Light Therapy (NAALT) conference held in Palm Beach, Florida from Jan. 31st – Feb. 2nd 2013. The aim of the association is to promote the applications of laser/light therapy, photomedicine and photobiology both clinically and scientifically. With a diverse and highly informative line-up of speakers – including researchers and clinicians such as physicians, chiropractors, physiotherapists, naturopaths etc. – there was a wide variety of talks available, which appealed to the equally diverse audience. This year’s theme was “Photobiomodulation: Molecular Mechanisms and Practical Applications” and lectures ranged from cellular and animal research to human case studies and clinical trials. There were a number of talks focused on the relatively new application of laser therapy for neurological conditions, including a lecture by Dr. Michael Hamblin, one of the leading researchers in neurorehabilitation with laser therapy. Dr. Paul Bradley, a physician specializing in head and neck pain, discussed the synergistic effect of combining laser therapy with other therapeutic approaches to treat chronic pain. Dr. Roberta Chow, a clinician and prolific researcher, spoke about the interactions between the immune and nervous systems for pain relief with laser therapy. With a strong speaker line-up, several breakout sessions focused on particular medical fields, and a large number of vendors in attendance, the NAALT conference provided clinicians with a one-stop venue for education and product selection. There are a number of excellent conferences or symposiums on laser therapy held throughout the world on a yearly basis, including the World Association of Laser Therapy (WALT) Conference, the American Society of Lasers in Medicine and Surgery (ASLMS) Annual Meeting and the Innovations in Laser Therapy Symposium. To learn more about NAALT or to become a member, please visit www.naalt.org. RCCSS(C) jOINS fICS On October 30, 2012, Dr. Glen Harris, then president of the Royal College of Chiropractic Sports Sciences (RCCSS(C)), met with Dr. Gordon Lawson and Secretary-General of the World Federation of Chiropractic, David Chapman-Smith, at the head office of the Fédération Internationale de Chiropratique du Sport (FICS) in Toronto. This historical meeting marked the official signing of the RCCSS(C) membership with FICS. This membership includes all Fellows of the RCCSS(C). RCCSS(C) members will have access to FICS correspondence. This membership allows the RCCSS(C) to contribute in the political and sports chiropractic arenas worldwide and for RCCSS(C) views to be heard internationally. For more information about RCCSS(C) please visit www.rccssc.ca/. For more information about FICS, please visit www.fics-sport.org.