FAQ

Physical and Occupational Therapists and Assistants (PT, PTA, OT, OTA), Certified Athletic Therapists (ATC),  Registered Massage Therapists (RMT), Chiropractors (DC), Osteopaths (DO) and Physician's (MD) may take any ICT course. All eligible clinicians must have malpractice insurance and be licensed to perform soft tissue treatments on patients. Please defer to your state licensing boards to see if you qualify to perform manual interventions.   

Ischemic Conditioning Techniques or ICT is a method of using occlusion to help heal injured tissues or protect against the potential of tissue injury. Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) is a method that uses blood pressure cuffs to occlude arteries while individuals are exercising in order to increase muscle growth or hypertrophy. Although both methods reduce blood flow, ICT is a manual therapy technique that creates occlusion at various sites throughout the body in order to promote healing of tissues. There is ease in performing the technique as it only requires a practitioners hands, it can be used to augment other soft tissue approaches, and a high compliance for patients as it is comfortable to tolerate.

Every course attendee should be prepared with a working background in anatomy of origins, insertions, nerve supply and blood supply of structures within the system being taken. Please come prepared with comfortable clothing as each participants body must be accessible for observation and treatment.  

A participant may cancel their registration and receive a full refund less $100 due to an administrative fee if a course is cancelled within 30 days of the course. In the case of multiple cancellations, the administrative fee will reduce to $50 for each subsequent course.

For all Systems and Master’s seminars, there is an open book multiple choice (MC) exam that will be turned in with the course evaluation form in order to obtain the Certificate of Completion. All participants must pass their MC exam by 80%.  

With over 40 years of medical research supporting Ischemic Conditioning, there have been thousands of studies that have shown the benefit of this technique in both preconditioning and postconditioning models. Please see to learn more: https://link.medium.com/3IvyJZER7S

Also, please refer to our recommended reading list on our home page for the earliest research in cardiology demonstrating the effects of this technique on cardiac tissue as a form of prevention.

Participants taking any course will receive a Certificate of Completion at the end of the course if they score above the 80% passing grade on the Multiple Choice (MC) exam.

In order to receive the prestigious ICTp (ICT Practitioner) designation that can be used after your official title, a participant must complete all 5 System's courses and the Master I Somatoanalysis course.

In order to receive the ICTi (ICT Instructor) designation, a participant must have an ICTp designation and must assist in teaching one System I, II or III course during the calendar year.

All Systems have been designed in a manner that make it easy to learn and develop skills.

Systems 1,2 and 3 are the foundation courses and may be taken in any order that suits a practitioner's availability. Although a student may take System 3 first, it is highly recommended to take System 1 or System 2 first.

System 4 and 5 may be taken after taking ONE of System 1,2 or 3.

Master I can be taken after a practitioner has taken ALL FOUNDATION COURSES (System 1, 2 and 3).

Ischemic Conditioning (IC) of the Elite Athlete and IC of Special Populations do NOT require any prerequisites.

We recommend signing up 4-6 weeks in advance as courses sell out.

Anatomy knowledge is key to being successful at ICT. The stronger this is, the easier information will flow! However, we understand that many of you may not have had an anatomy class in quite a long time.... This is why we provide origins, insertions, blood and nerve supply to all structures discussed in each System. By doing this we give practitioners a "refresh" of a basic anatomy course and then dive deep into palpation or functional anatomy where it really counts. A majority of the course is spent on feeling the appropriate structures and vascular sites.

The ICTpre (Preconditioning Specialist) is a designation given to those who have attended one of the ICT preconditioning courses and has passed their exam. This designation allows health care providers to perform a specific protocol as form of prevention of remote organ injury.

The ICTp (ICT Practitioner) is a designation given to those who have taken System 1-5 (or all post-conditioning courses) and the Somatoanalysis coursework. This designation allows health care providers to treat injuries after they have already occurred locally throughout the body. This also allows a practitioner to obtain instructor status or the ICTi if they act as a teaching assistant for one foundation course throughout the year.

Students receiving their first degree in healthcare may receive the student discount. The student discount can extend to courses taken in the first 6 months of graduation. ALL students must show proof of enrollment in a healthcare field in order to obtain the student rate. The student rate will be offered at checkout.

If you would like to transfer your course fees to another course, you are able to do so without penalty if you transfer 30 days prior to the start of the course. If you would like to transfer to a different course within 30 days of the start of the course originally booked, you may do so with a $100 penalty fee. The course must be scheduled within 12 months of the original course date.

Instructors for the course are highly welcomed! ICT requires that all practitioners who desire to become an ICT instructor (iICT) speak with our Education Coordinator on site in order to help assist in creating the appropriate track.

ICT instructors will have completed the following:

1. System 1-5 coursework
2. Master 1 coursework
3. Case study submission no more than 1000 words which can be submitted at the end of Masters I course

ICT instructors gain the benefit of "teaching learning" to other fellow practitioners, becoming a part of a community of like-minded thinkers. Instructors maintain their status as long as they assist teaching 1 course/year without the need to recertify.

The Master I: Somatoanalysis course is the biomechanical course complement to the ICT System's courses. After going through all the trouble to name, identify and number all of the palpable structures in the body in the System's courses, Master I discusses how to put the all the pieces together in this exciting module. Using physics, neuromotor control principles and postural faults, this course will inform participants how to look holistically at the body.

A participant must take System I-V in order to be eligible for Master I. At the end of the course, participants will receive an ICT Practitioner or ICTp designation and will be eligible to be an instructor for the course. If a participant chooses to be an instructor or ICTi, they must assist in teaching one System's course during the calendar year.

Come prepared to treat and be treated! Accessibility of tissues and structures are important for students of ICT to learn by feeling and sensing. Bike shorts, regular shorts, loose t-shirts, activewear that make skin contact accessible is highly recommended. Remember that you are also learning by being treated!

All 5 systems courses are setup in a very similar way.

Day 1:

4-8pm Theory and Technique Lecture

Day 2:

The first half of the morning is spent learning System Specifications, Vascular Anatomy and  Activation/Pulse or AP Lab. The remaining part of the day is going from segment to segment for each system.

Day 3:

The morning and early afternoon is spent continuing on with segments and ends with a special topic.

Testing:

Testing will occur at the end of Day 3 and each participant will be randomly assigned a testing time. If there is travel conflict, please speak to the Education Coordinator at the beginning of the course Please see FAQ regarding testing for further information.

ICT by Stroma uses all three body systems, the vascular, neural and myofascial, to train practitioners to perform ischemic conditioning at various parts throughout the body. First, you start by locating the body part you would like to treat (which takes some awareness of the myofascial system). Secondly, you will need to find the artery that supplies that structure to occlude it (this is where the vascular system comes in). Finally, to enhance the effect of the occlusion, we teach you how to stretch the nerve (and more importantly, the vascular supply to the nerve), thus, incorporating the neural system.

Yes! Once a practitioner has completed their System 1 and 2 coursework, they will be required to spend 15-20 min at the end of their second course to go over detailed information that will allow them to become a Preconditioning Specialist or the ICTpre. So taking the first 2 foundation courses will get you on your way to your first ICT designation without additional time or costs!