Tag: Physiotherapy

Why Physiotherapy Is So Important in Stroke Rehabilitation

Stroke rehabilitation is sometimes an uphill climb. After a stroke, patients can be left with paralysis, especially one-sided paralysis. Pain, as well as sensory deficits, has to be managed. Physiotherapy is a key part of the treatment plan.

Physiotherapists begin stroke rehabilitation very soon after the stroke has occurred, while the patient is still in acute care. The physiotherapist will first do an evaluation to determine what disabilities must be dealt with during stroke rehabilitation.

Some of the possible problems are: lack of strength and endurance, limited range of motion, problems with sensation in the limbs, and troubles walking. Stroke rehabilitation will focus on the problems that the patient displays. A plan for treatment will be devised.

Patients will learn to use limbs that the stroke has made temporarily useless. During stroke rehabilitation, it will be determined whether these limbs will reach their previous potential. If not, the physiotherapist will teach the patients ways to manage without their full use of the limbs.

One problem of stroke rehabilitation is called learned nonuse. This is when stroke patients do everything in their power to avoid using limbs that have been affected by the stroke. If left to their own devices, they will cripple the limb further by letting it atrophy through nonuse.

Physiotherapists use stroke rehabilitation to make sure that patients do indeed work to use their impaired limbs. They can do this in a number of ways. Sometimes it helps for the physiotherapist to tap or stroke the limb they want the patient to use.

If the patient will not easily participate in active range of motion exercises, passive ones can be used where the physiotherapist moves the limb herself. Other times, the patient will try to use the affected limb but will naturally fall back on the limb that is functioning well. In this case, stroke rehabilitation may involve gently restraining the healthy limbs.

It can be a difficult task of stroke rehabilitation to help victims relearn switching from one task to another. This is partly because of problems in the brain. The cues to move the muscles and joints in order to change movements are slow in coming. This is why practice is so important. The more times physiotherapists help a patient with this, the easier it becomes.

Recent studies have revealed that stroke rehabilitation can continue long after the hospital stay. In the past, stroke victims were given a short round of physiotherapy during the time they were in the hospital and for a few weeks shortly afterwards.

New research shows that physiotherapy can promote more advanced stroke rehabilitation if it is continued progressively at home. Patients will learn to walk better. They will gain strength to do daily chores. They will also achieve better posture and more balance, which can prevent falls.

Stroke rehabilitation involves a number of therapies, all designed to restore function to the patient’s affected limbs. Electrical stimulation, hydrotherapy, and games have all been used. Stroke rehabilitation is not complete without the help of physiotherapy services.

Types of Physiotherapy That Help Lower Back Pain

Lower back pain plagues Americans to the extent that 80% will suffer from it at some time in their lives. It is one of the most common reasons people visit the doctor. For many, the problem is more than a passing incident; they need physiotherapy.

Physiotherapy of different types can be used to treat lower back pain. Acupuncture is fast becoming an important method for the relief of such pain. The doctor has the patient lie face-down and inserts the acupuncture needles across the back. The doctor then finishes the procedure for lower back pain. Pain relief after a series of treatments usually lasts months.

Massage is also used for lower back pain. The massage used must be done by someone well-versed in the treatment of lower back pain. A massage done by an untrained person may do more harm than good.

These methods are called passive therapies, or modalities. They are done to the patient and not by the patient. There are other modalities that are commonly used. Heat and ice packs are a well-known form of passive physiotherapy. They can be used separately, or they can be used alternately by a person who is suffering from acute lower back pain.

A transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator (TENS) can be used as another modality for lower back pain. The patient will feel the sensation of the stimulator instead of his pain. If the TENS unit seems to work well for him, he will be sent home with one to use at his convenience.

Ultrasound is especially useful as a passive therapy for anyone with acute lower back pain. It delivers heat deep into the muscles of the lower back. This not only relieves pain. It can also speed healing.

Back exercises may be assigned by a physiotherapist. These exercises will help with lower back pain if one does them correctly and faithfully. The only exception is if the back is in an acute condition requiring emergency care or surgery.

The exercises that will help with lower back pain the most will be assigned and supervised by a physiotherapist. They may be done at home, but it will be necessary to follow instructions and check in frequently.

These exercises include ones for lower back pain that stretch or extend the back and ones that strengthen it. One is an exercise where one lies prone and moves as if swimming. This protects the back while giving the surrounding muscles a workout.

Lower back pain exercises called flexion exercises strengthen the midsection to provide support for the back. If the lower back pain is reduced when one sits, these exercises are important. One is a knee-to-chest exercise.

Aerobic exercise such as walking is excellent for reducing and preventing lower back pain as well. Massage and acupuncture can be counted on to relieve pain for most patients. Exercises can make the back stronger to both relieve and prevent lower back pain. Any physiotherapy that can help relieve lower back pain will help millions of people.

The Types of Neurological Conditions and Physiotherapy Used

Neurological conditions may be very severe. They can be life-threatening at times, and they can certainly affect the quality of the patient’s life. There are many neurological conditions and physiotherapy can help many of them.

Alzheimer’s disease takes away the declining years of many older people. It is surprising to note that it can occur in people 40 years old or younger. ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a disease that robs the brain and spinal cord of the ability to move. Both of these are neurological diseases that can be helped by physiotherapy.

MS, another of the neurological conditions that affects the brain and spinal cord, can lead to a long, slow decline. Parkinson’s disease is another of the neurological conditions of the brain. This one can cause shaking and loss of coordination, and problems moving and walking. Physiotherapy offers some relief to these patients.

Guillain Barre Syndrome is one of the types of neurological conditions that affect the brain and spinal cord too. It is a case of the person’s own immune system attacking outside these areas. It can be severe enough to require emergency hospitalization. Physiotherapy offers help with regaining strength and adapting to life with the disease.

Neurological conditions that are autoimmune diseases are difficult to treat. Myasthenia Gravis is one such illness. It causes muscular weakness because of a lack of communication between nerves and muscles. Like other neurological conditions, it can be very debilitating.

A great amount of physiotherapy is needed to help Myasthenia Gravis patients to live with their neurological conditions. This includes strength training, training in the use of supportive devices, and help with common tasks. One problem physiotherapists face when working with MG patients is that too much exercise will make their condition worse and not better.

Many of the patients with neurological conditions cannot carry on daily functions such as caring for themselves and their homes. It is not uncommon for these people to be unable to work. They may even have trouble walking or getting up and down stairs at all.

Difficulty swallowing or breathing; dizziness, poor balance and falls, and a total lack of endurance plague many of these patients who have neurological conditions. Medications or surgeries can help with some of their problems, but many problems are ones they will have to abide. Physiotherapy can offer solutions that other branches of medicine cannot.

Exercises, as in most physiotherapy, include strengthening and stretching exercises. In whatever way is possible, patients with neurological conditions need to get aerobic exercise. Physiotherapists may be able to make a plan so that this is possible.

Part of this plan for patients with neurological conditions would include balance training and coordination training. With these two skills in place, the patient will have a more advanced ability to do aerobic and other exercises. Aquatic exercise is also used.

Patients with neurological conditions must live with many problems of lack of movement and function. Physiotherapy can help them to overcome some of these problems. It can make their lives easier and more pleasant, besides.

Pediatric Disorders and Physiotherapy to Help Them

It is a sad day when one has to deal with pediatric disorders in the family. Most people believe that children should never suffer from physical problems. Yet, the reality must be faced that pediatric disorders can happen. The good news is that physiotherapy offers some help for them.

Unfortunately, there are numerous pediatric disorders. To name a few, there are: scoliosis, torticollis, Osgood-Schlatter, sports and traumatic injuries, reluctant walkers, developmental disorders, cerebral palsy, and genetic disorders.

Physiotherapy for scoliosis – a curvature of the spine – consists of exercises to strengthen the back. Electrical stimulation is used for this type of pediatric disorders. The stimulation goes directly to the skeletal muscles. Chiropractic is also used in an effort to straighten the spine.

Torticollis is a type of pediatric disorders of the neck. There is a problem with one of the muscles of the neck so that the child is not able to hold his head up straight. The head will be tilted to one side. This chin will jut out on the opposite side of the neck. Physiotherapy can stretch this muscle so that the child can hold his head more normally.

Spinal cord injuries as pediatric disorders are difficult to treat. Children often do not want to do the work that is required to stay ahead of the deterioration that can be caused by this condition. Physiotherapy personnel are challenged to keep the child’s spirits up as they teach them how to exercise with and without special equipment.

Brain injuries, including cerebral palsy and strokes are pediatric disorders that must be managed delicately. The neurological system is often not as sturdy as the skeletal or muscular systems. However, brain injuries also involve these other systems as well.

A new treatment for these pediatric disorders like brain injuries is using hyperbaric oxygen therapy. This type of physiotherapy is based on the idea that, in these conditions, there are often parts of the brain that are not working but can be revived. The HBOT can sometimes revive them.

Pediatric disorders such as sports injuries and traumatic injuries require different types of physiotherapy based upon the location and severity of the injury. If a child has repeatedly sprained the same ankle, therapy will necessarily focus on that ankle, as well as any body part that supports or counterbalances that ankle. Overall strength is important.

Traumatic injuries require a certain amount of psychological training, as the subject of the accident or other ordeal may bring on such distress that the child does not want to work. A good physiotherapist will be able to work with such a child. Traumatic injuries can also be severe enough that the physiotherapist plans a lengthy course of therapy to overcome them. Pediatric disorders like this require patience from everyone involved.

The list of pediatric disorders is long and varied. Not all of them can be helped by physiotherapy at this time. Right now, physiotherapy can be used in many cases to relieve symptoms or even to reverse damage. Physiotherapy performs a valuable function in helping children live more normal lives.