Resources

I believe knowledge is power. The more you learn and understand about your own condition, the more you can take charge of your situation.

On this list, I’ve selected articles written for both patients and medical professionals, so you can get a full range of perspectives.

I’ve chosen information on the SI joint, as well as related conditions and other parts of the body that can be affected when you have SIJD. It’s so important to look at how everything is connected as a whole!

Here are the links. Happy researching!

Specifically for Patients:

• Verywell Health: Sacroiliac Joint Pain and Dysfunction (does a great job of explaining alignment, and why it’s important to correct it precisely!).
• PhysioWorks/John Miller: Sacroiliac Joint Pain.
• Dr. David Polly Jr for Spine Universe: Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction Causes
• Coordinated Health: Low Back Pain Part 1: How does the SI joint relate to other causes of low back pain
• Coordinated Health: Low Back Pain Part 4: A physiatrist explains SI joint dysfunction
• How Your Butt Can Hurt Your Back : TIME magazine article

Professional Guides

• Back in Business Physiotherapy/Martin Krause (Sydney, Aus): Back, pelvic girdle, and hip pain.
• Dr. Barbara Hungerford and Advanced Manual Therapy Associates — a ton of really great information.
• Sacroiliac Joint Force and Form Closure (PhysioPedia)– great outline of the various factors, passive and active, which contribute to SIJ stability.
• Evidence-Based Examination and Treatment of the Pelvis (fascinating continuing education course for physical therapists, taught by Dr. Alexis Wright for Medbridge)
• Physical Therapist’s Guide to Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction, from the American Physical Therapy Association.
• SI Joint Upslip, North American Institute of Orthopedic Manual Therapy

Scientific Articles

• The relationship of the sacroiliac joint, stabilization musculature, and lumbo-pelvic instability  (also check out this great slideshow for a visual aide).
• Transfer of lumbosacral load to iliac bones and legs Part 1: Biomechanics of self-bracing of the sacroiliac joints and its significance for treatment and exercise.
• The sacroiliac joint in chronic low back pain.
• The sacroiliac joint: anatomy, physiology, and clinical significance.
• Case study: Chronic sacroiliac joint and pelvic girdle dysfunction in a 35-year-old nulliparous woman successfully managed with multimodal and multidisciplinary approach
• Inciting events initiating injection-proven sacroiliac joint syndrome.

• Recognizing specific characteristics of non-specific low back pain.
• Malalignment Syndrome in Runners 

Transverse abdominis and core

• The relation between the transversus abdominis muscles, sacroiliac joint mechanics, and low back pain.
• An MRI Investigation Into the Function of the Transversus Abdominis Muscle During “Drawing-In” of the Abdominal Wall

SI joint and Knee:

• Vaughn, D. (2008).  Isolated Knee Pain: A Case Report Highlighting Regional Interdependence.  Journal of Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 38(10), pp. 616-623.

Women’s Health

• Powerful female hormones, injuries & back pain
• Pelvic Girdle Pain (BabyCentre.co.uk)
• Pelvic Pain During Pregnancy (What To Expect When You’re Expecting)

Pelvic Floor

• Frequently asked questions about pelvic floor disorders — the University of Chicago Medical Center provides a comprehensive overview.
• Cait’s Day— Blog post from a patient with a hypertonic pelvic floor (she experiences too much muscle tightness)
• Zosia Mamet struggled for six years to have her pelvic floor dysfunction taken seriously
• Courageous and informative blog post from Alexandra Ellen  on the “Hidden Realities of Pelvic Pain”
• Beyond Basics Physical Therapy has some AMAZING resources.  
• Body Harmony PT: Hip Injuries can lead to Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
• Taylored Training and Fitness:
  • 5 Things I’ve Learned as a Pelvic Health Physiotherapist
  • 5 Bathroom Mistakes that can lead to pelvic floor dysfunction
  • The issue that many women are dealing with in silence

Pubic symphysis

• Healthline.com: Pubic Symphysis
• Physiopedia: Pubic Symphysis Pain 
• Symphysis Pubis Pain During Pregnancy (What To Expect When You’re Expecting)
• Body Harmony PT: Pubic Symphysis Pain

Prolotherapy

• The New York Times: Injections to Kick Start Healing
• The Boston Globe: Targeting sports related injuries with new treatments
• Informative blog: Recover Your Stride by Jim Hansen

Muscle Energy Technique

• Clarifying the Muscle Energy Technique— a response I wrote to some questions from a reader.
• Muscle Energy Technique for Pelvic Rotations — an explanation of the technique that I use, written by a physical therapist in scientific terms.
• History of the Muscle Energy Technique— from Leon Chaitow ND, DO
• Short-Term Effect of Muscle Energy Technique on Pain in Individuals with Non-Specific Lumbopelvic Pain: A Pilot Study.  Peer-reviewed study from the Journal of Manual and Manipulative Therapy that demonstrated a benefit to MET for lumbopelvic pain.
• Dr. Pooja Joshi: MET in SI Joint Dysfunction: Outlines MET for all different types of SI misalignments, with illustrations.

Hypermobility

• A doctor struggled with a rare, incurable syndrome. Now she helps others overcome it. Washington Post article on EDS expert Dr. Alissa Zingman.
• Disjointed, Diana Jovin (editor)– widely-referenced book on hypermobile EDS
• Ehlers-Danlos Society non-profit advocacy group that offers great resources for people with all hypermobility conditions

Surgery

• Amazingly Informative Interview with Dr. Carter Beck
• The Boston Globe: It was supposed to be a blue ocean! Why sacroiliac joint surgery is still a puddle of dreams.