When you’re experiencing pain, a physical therapist can help you deal with it and, through physical therapy, reduce it or get rid of it entirely.
Unlike other physical therapy practices, Direct Physiotherapy located in Mt. Lebanon, PA, and founded by Dr. Mason Tupta in 2019, offers “hands-on” orthopedic manual physical therapy. At some practices, particularly group practices, a physical therapist may work with three or even four patients at the same time receiving only exercise-based therapy.
“When I began my practice, I saw that this was a common issue in the field of physical therapy,” he says. “Many practices will overbook, perform a lot of exercise-based therapy and may also do some ice/heat coupled with electrical stimulation before sending the patient out the door. Too many patients were being juggled around various staff and not getting the help and attention that they needed. They may see a different physical therapist every time they come in which makes it hard for their provider to track and measure the patient’s progression.”
Dr. Tupta takes great pride, not only in providing one-on-one manual therapy, but he is the only person patients will see for their wide variety of orthopedic and musculoskeletal conditions.
“The difference here is that it’s more manual, hands-on physical therapy and more of a holistic approach compared to normalized exercise-based physical therapy,” he says. “Treatments may consist of soft tissue work, instrument assisted soft tissue mobilizations, joint mobilizations, trigger point therapy and/or dry needling and then we prescribe the exercises the patient needs. It’s all one-on-one and directly focused to what every individual may need.
A graduate of Duquesne University, Dr. Tupta earned his doctorate in Physical Therapy, along with a bachelor’s degree in health science and biology. To stay on top of the latest advancements in the field, Dr. Tupta furthers his education and expertise through continued studies in Manual Physical Therapy through the Maitland-Australian Physiotherapy Seminars and Spinal Mobilization through the American Academy of Manipulative Therapy.
Dr. Tupta is also a licensed manual trigger point therapist and is certified in Dry Needling through MyoPain seminars. A prominent organization for ongoing training in Dry Needling and trigger point therapy, Dr. Tupta is only 1 of 3 physical therapists in the state of Pennsylvania to be certified through this program.
Dry needling, also known as intramuscular stimulation, is a treatment designed to ease muscular and nerve pain. During dry needling, Dr. Tupta inserts filiform needles (fine, short, stainless steel needles) into the patient’s skin. These needles are inserted into the trigger points of a person’s tight or sore muscles. The needle causes a localized twitch response in the muscles trigger point and relieves any muscle/nerve pain or spasms. The needles are inserted into the muscle for short periods of time in a safe and comfortable manner.
“It’s very safe,” says Dr. Tupta. “We’re assessing the muscle and assessing for trigger points and needling through those trigger points. There’s a lot of research and evidenced-based literature that supports dry needling for a broad spectrum of pain.”
Direct Physiotherapy accepts a variety of insurances including Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, UnitedHealthGroup, Medicare, and Workers Compensation/Auto policies.
For further information on Direct Physiotherapy and Dr. Tupta, please call 412-207-7612 or visit www.directphysiotherapy.org.
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