Your Quick Guide About Physiotherapy
Many people rely on physiotherapy to improve their health. It helps alleviate pain, overcome injuries, and increase their quality of life. But despite its widespread practice, there’s a lot of confusion surrounding the efficacy of this treatment and the techniques it involves.
We’ll shed light on the critical facts about physiotherapy.
What’s the purpose of physiotherapy?
Physiotherapy plays a pivotal role in restoring function and movement, whether alone or complementary. It primarily addresses musculoskeletal issues caused by work-related and sports injuries. For instance, people who sustain an injury due to repetitive movements or heavy lifting can benefit from physiotherapy.
Health conditions that are candidates for physiotherapy
Here are some of the problems this treatment helps tackle:
Back and neck pain arising from bone or muscle problems.
Issues in muscles, ligaments, joints, and bones, such as the effects of amputation and arthritis.
Asthma and other lung conditions.
Pelvic problems.
Mobility loss due to trauma to the spine or brain, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease.
Stiffness, swelling, pain, fatigue, and reduced muscular strength during palliative care or cancer treatment.
What techniques does physiotherapy incorporate?
Physiotherapists rely on various techniques to provide relief for their patients:
Manual therapy
Manual therapy uses the hands to mobilize affected joints and soft tissue. Also, it reduces pain brought about by muscle spasms and joint stiffness. It is highly beneficial in addressing chronic back pain and other musculoskeletal conditions.
Electrotherapy
Electrotherapy is a physiotherapy approach that facilitates muscle contraction to encourage healing and lessen pain. As the name suggests, it employs electric impulses or current to stir the nervous system and lead to muscle contractions.
Physiotherapists perform electrotherapy with special equipment:
Ultrasound: Emits high-frequency sound waves to stimulate cell activity, blood circulation, reduce muscle spasms, and accelerate the healing process.
Short-wave diathermy (SWD): Forms an electromagnetic field to produce heat in tissue that lowers pain, inflammation, and swelling.
Laser therapy: Uses narrow and concentrated laser beams that treat skin conditions and soft tissue injuries.
TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation): Sends electric current to the affected body part to address chronic pain conditions.
Hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy uses water to promote recovery. Physiotherapists perform this treatment in shallow pools of warm water or unique hydrotherapy pools.
This method is perfect for adults and children with learning or physical difficulties. In most cases, it helps relieve pain, relaxes the contracted muscles, and boosts blood circulation.
Exercises
Therapeutic exercises are a staple in physiotherapy sessions. These exercises are used in the recovery stages of some conditions, including sports injuries and surgeries that impair mobility. In these cases, walking, swimming, and other gentle exercises help improve the functionality of particular body parts.
Some exercises also strengthen the patient’s limbs and help people suffering from incomplete or slight paralysis.
Get expert physiotherapeutic services
Do you need physiotherapy? Please feel free to contact an experienced physiotherapist to enhance your health.
