More Services

Sports Medicine Consultations

Dr. David Lowe, MD is available weekly for sports medicine consultations by appointment. His services are fully covered by OHIP.

Custom Orthotics

Custom orthotics are effective in aligning specific foot imbalances. They comfortably fit into your shoes, like an insole and are made from precise imprints of your feet.

Orthotics help to manage pain or discomfort in the spine, hips, knees, and feet by gently correcting foot abnormalities.

Our clinic offers a wide variety of orthotics to fit your lifestyle including all-purpose orthotics, dress shoe orthotics, sport orthotics for sports such as running or skiing, cushioned orthotics designed for those with arthritis or diabetes and pediatric orthotics.

A registered physiotherapist will provide a full biomechanical assessment and fitting. The cost for the orthotics themselves, is covered by most extended health care insurance, but a prescription from your health care provider is often required. The assessment and orthotics fitting are included in your physiotherapy coverage. It takes approximately 2-3 weeks to complete construction of the orthotics.

You can book an appointment for an assessment through the appointment desk. If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Phillips, Registered Physiotherapist at our main clinic.

Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy (VRT)

What is VRT?

VRT is a specific form of physical therapy designed to overcome problems related to certain balance disorders. Specifically, those disorders resulting from Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) or Peripheral Vestibular Hypofunction (Vestibular Neuritis and Labyrinthitis). VRT has been proven to be very effective in treating these conditions and the result of treatment is both an improvement in a client’s symptoms and their ability to carry out their activities of daily living.

What are the goals of VRT?

The goals of VRT are to decrease the sensation of dizziness and/or vertigo, to improve balance, and minimize falls. Once the problem has been determined, specifically tailored exercises are prescribed for the unique needs of the client. These exercises are designed to improve the client’s vestibular function and to promote the client’s central nervous system adaptation and compensation.

What are the parts of our VRT program?

The accurate clinical diagnosis and assessment of a client is critical for a successful individualized VRT program. The assessment includes: taking a thorough medical history, a detailed history of the client's balance problems and a physical examination with specially designed diagnostic tools.
The information provided by this assessment allows us to tailor a program for the client. Treatments include: therapist applied manoeuvres for positional vertigo, habituation head & neck exercises, balance retraining and counselling for walking aids (if necessary).

With some conditions (e.g. acute BPPV) the client may need only 2 or 3 treatments to completely resolve the condition. Other conditions (e.g. chronic episodic BPPV and Peripheral Vestibular Hypofunction) usually require more treatment (i.e.6-8 weeks of progressive in-clinic therapy and home exercises). Some of the exercise and activities may at first cause an increase in symptoms, therefore, client motivation is a significant factor in successful implementation of a VRT program.

Who would benefit from our VRT program?

If you or your client has any of the following issues: positional vertigo, persistent vertigo, nausea related to movement, a history of falls, motion sensitivity, feelings of disequilibria or poor balance.

Individuals with central nervous system problems or unstable lesions (e.g. demyelinating disease, seizure disorders and migraines) or progressive degenerative processes are not candidates for our VRT program.

How do I get a referral?

Because there are many causes of dizziness (e.g. drug interactions, etc) it is important that a client first sees his or her family doctor. Once their doctor has determined that they may benefit from VRT the doctor will provide you with an appropriate referral.