Health Science Podcast

How do changes in myelin affect movement—and how can physical therapy students connect the science to what matters most to the person?

In this episode of the Lewis University Health Science Podcast, Dr. Arvie Vitente, PT, DPT, PhD, MPH, GCS, FNAP, welcomes Allie Reis, SPT, an academic graduate assistant and recipient of the program’s Outstanding Student Physical Therapist of the Month recognition, for a student-focused review of multiple sclerosis. Together, they connect nervous system changes, examination findings, and outcome measures through a central clinical question: “What does this finding mean for what the person needs to do?”

The discussion follows Sofia, a course case whose priority is walking between classrooms with fewer stops. Rather than memorizing a list of symptoms and tests, listeners are encouraged to consider what information will help explain her difficulties and guide meaningful, person-centered goals.

• From myelin to movement: Review the roles of oligodendrocytes, demyelination, axonal injury, and remyelination, and explore how the location of nervous system involvement helps guide examination choices.
• Understanding MS patterns and diagnosis: Revisit relapsing-remitting, secondary progressive, and primary progressive MS; clinically isolated syndrome; and an introductory explanation of the 2024 McDonald criteria revisions, including dissemination in space and time.
• Making sense of examination findings: Distinguish weakness, spasticity, and selective motor control; review coordination and sensory findings; and connect visual symptoms, cognition, and other less-visible concerns to everyday function.
• Fatigue, heat, and safety: Explore the difference between reported fatigue and measurable performance fatigability, followed by a discussion of Uhthoff phenomenon, relapse versus pseudo-relapse, and appropriate communication about concerning symptom changes.
• Choosing measures and interpreting change: Match measures to clinical questions, distinguish disability from quality of life and disease impact, and review cutoffs, minimal detectable change, and minimally clinically important difference. The discussion then connects results to clear documentation and measurable functional goals.

The episode reviews the 12-Item Multiple Sclerosis Walking Scale, Dizziness Handicap Inventory, Fatigue Scale for Motor and Cognitive Functions, Visual Analog Scale for Fatigue, Functional Reach Test, the course’s static-standing protocol, Rivermead Mobility Index, Expanded Disability Status Scale, Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54, and Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale. The emphasis is on understanding what each measure captures—and what it cannot establish on its own.

Pause-and-answer questions give listeners opportunities to check their understanding throughout the review. Keep one question in mind as you return to class or lab: How does the finding connect to the person’s meaningful daily activities? For Sofia, that means returning to her goal of walking between classrooms with fewer stops.

This episode is intended for educational review and is not individualized medical advice.

What can a movement pattern or an assessment score tell us—and how do we connect those findings to what matters most to the patient?

In this episode of the Lewis University Health Science Podcast, Dr. Arvie Vitente welcomes Kirk Hammer, SPT, Lewis University DPT Class of 2028, for a case-based conversation about Parkinson disease. They follow Henry, a fictional patient who wants to return to volunteering at his church library, to explore the connections among movement, safety, assessment, and meaningful participation.

The conversation examines movement patterns such as bradykinesia, rigidity, freezing, and festination, along with nonmotor concerns and the role of the interprofessional care team. Dr. Vitente and Kirk also discuss medication ON and OFF states, orthostatic symptoms, and why the patient’s current response should guide the examination.

Listeners will hear practical discussions of Hoehn and Yahr staging, the MDS-UPDRS, Mini-BESTest, and cognitive Timed Up and Go, including common interpretation mistakes and the importance of documenting exactly what was tested. The episode also considers related conditions that warrant further medical evaluation.

Throughout the discussion, the focus returns to the person behind the findings: understanding fatigue and quality of life, listening to the patient’s priorities, and translating examination results into clear SOAP documentation and meaningful goals. The central message: assessment is not just about producing a score—it is about understanding how the findings relate to the life someone wants to live.

Join Dr. Arvie Vitente and Lewis University DPT student Miranda Carlson, Class of 2028, for a practical review of traumatic brain injury. Explore injury mechanisms, MRI basics, acute safety, the Glasgow Coma Scale, Rancho levels, and assessments of consciousness, attention, and memory. Clinical examples and review questions connect classroom concepts to safer, more informed physical therapy decisions.

A clinical deep dive into stroke neuroanatomy and diagnostic reasoning with Dr. Arvie Vitente and Megan Baker, SPT. The discussion moves past simple motor weakness to break down the clinical discriminators behind cortical syndromes, pushing behavior, cerebellar emergencies, and classic brainstem crossed signs.

Dr. Arvie Vitente and Sebastian Trevino-Ramirez, SPT, discuss stroke from a physical therapy perspective—from emergency recognition and basic pathophysiology to lesion localization, examination, outcome measures, and participation-focused clinical decision-making. Using Maria’s case, they connect clinical findings to functional meaning and defensible next steps in patient care.

In this episode, Dr. Arvie Vitente will review the essentials of vestibular rehabilitation for physical therapists, with a practical focus on how to evaluate and treat patients who present with dizziness, vertigo, gaze instability, and imbalance.

In this episode, Dr. Arvie Vitente breaks down the anatomy of the pelvic inlet and pelvic outlet in a clear and clinically meaningful way. Learn the key bony landmarks that define the boundaries of the true pelvis, including the sacral promontory, arcuate line, pectineal line, ischial tuberosities, and sacrotuberous ligaments.

Dr. Vitente explains the difference between the true and false pelvis, clarifies common misconceptions, and connects this foundational anatomy to real-world physical therapy practice. From pelvic floor rehabilitation to load transfer and childbirth mechanics, this episode helps you visualize the pelvis in three dimensions and understand why orientation matters.

Perfect for DPT students, clinicians, and anyone who wants to strengthen their anatomical reasoning.

In this episode, Dr. Arvie Vitente walks through the deep gluteal and posterior hip region, where powerful movers, precision stabilizers, key ligaments, and high-stakes neurovascular structures converge. Using a list as a roadmap, you’ll connect anatomy to palpation, movement, and clinical reasoning for hip and buttock symptoms.

In this episode of the Health Science Podcast, Dr. Arvie Vitente guides listeners through the hip and deep gluteal musculature using a comprehensive, clinically oriented approach. Leveraging the Complete Anatomy app, this episode reviews muscle origins, insertions, innervation, and actions, and then connects anatomy to functional movement assessment. Designed to bridge foundational anatomy with clinical reasoning, this episode emphasizes how muscle structure, nerve supply, and line of pull influence movement and stability.

In this episode of the Health Science Podcast, Dr. Arvie Vitente walks listeners through the anatomical foundations needed to understand the sacral plexus. Beginning with spinal nerve organization and numbering, the discussion builds through ventral and dorsal rami, major nerve plexuses, and then focuses on the structure, branches, and clinical relevance of the sacral plexus. This episode connects anatomy to movement, gait, and clinical reasoning for rehabilitation professionals.