Teresa A. Atkinson, P.T., Cert MDT is a manual physical therapist in Houston, Texas and has actively practiced physical therapy since 1973. She has been in private practice in the Houston area since 1983, specializing in disorders of the spine, painful and restricted joints, cervicogenic headaches and cranio-mandibular pathology. Her practice has always been focused on head, neck, and low back pain patients both acute and chronic. Currently she has been focusing and perfecting treatments in the following; reactivation of arthritic hips, knees, ankles, frozen/painful shoulders, tennis elbow, joint derangements, neck and low back pain, and spinal disc bulging and herniation.
In the last twenty years, she has added mechanical joint treatment to her repertoire. Influenced by the research on nonsurgical joint treatment form Australia and the UK she has been seeing arthritic degeneration and post trauma patients in her practice. She is working now in close collaboration with a regenerative orthopedic physician to enhance effects of Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections on joint recovery.
Teresa A. Atkinson is a graduate of Columbia University, College of Science with a degree in Biology. She then received her degree in Physical Therapy from Columbia University, New York City College of Physicians and Surgeons shortly after. Over the years, she has studied under Mariano Rocabado, John Upledger, D.O., Alan Grehin, D.O. (Craniopathic), Janet Travel, M.D., Robin McKenzie, Brian Mulligan, David Hamer and others.
She has been a chief therapist at Cranio-mandibular/TMJ clinics at the Medical College of Georgia and LSU. In Houston, she has been a visiting lecturer at U.T. Dental School and adjunct faculty at the TWU School of Physical Therapy. Teresa Atkinson has also been invited as a faculty member to numerous spinal and Cranio-mandibular seminars given in Texas and nationally.
In the 90’s, she took the McKenzie Institute Mechanical spinal curriculum and passed her certification in mechanical diagnosis and therapy in 1998. In October 1999, she was approved as a Clinical Level III Therapist, the highest level of clinical expertise recognized at T.I.R.R. Rehabilitation Centers (where she ran the spinal clinic from 1996-2001). Since June 2001, she has returned to private practice. She is a member of APTA, TPTA, American Back Society, McKenzie Institute USA, and other professional organizations.
At present, she is seeing patients in her new office at 2900 Weslayan. It is a concierge practice in which permits her to focus on patients and deliver top of the line, comprehensive care. Patients are given full documentation to apply themselves for insurance reimbursement.