Instructor Bio:
Kristin Valdes, OTD, OT, CHT, is the owner and Director of Hand Works Therapy in Sarasota, Florida. She is an assistant professor at Gannon University. She has been in private practice for over twenty years and specializes in the treatment and rehabilitation of the upper extremity. Her clinical expertise includes treatment of the hand, wrist, and elbow, shoulder, splinting, and arthritis. Dr. Valdes has published articles in the Journal of Hand Therapy, Hand Magazine, Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, and The Journal of Physical Therapy Science. She serves as a member of the Board of the American Society of Hand Therapists and American Association of Hand Surgery.
Dr. Valdes has published chapters on hand, elbow, and shoulder fractures and dislocations in Advanced Concepts of Hand Pathology and Surgery. She is an assistant editor of the Journal of Hand Therapy. Dr. Valdes received her OTD degree with a specialization in hand rehabilitation from Rocky Mountain University of Health Care Professions in Provo, Utah. Dr Valdes is member of the Guatemala Healing Hands Medical Mission.
Sensorimotor deficits can impair function and may be present in individuals with hand and wrist conditions. Researchers have reported sensorimotor deficits exist in patients with… read more
Distal radius fractures are a commonly seen diagnosis and account for 14% of all fractures. Women over the age of 65 who fracture their wrist… read more
How can individuals with wrist fracture avoid functional decline? For the individual who incurred a wrist fracture, timely and effective rehabilitation may significantly reduce functional… read more
Do you need an update on the flexor tendon? New research has made significant changes to the flexor tendon rehabilitation program for the hand and… read more
What are the effects of different hand motions and positions used during early-protected motion rehabilitation on tendon forces? Though these are usually not well understood… read more