Posts Tagged ‘Physiotherapy’

Physiotherapy VS Physical Therapy Services – What Is the Difference?

Physio, also referred to as physical therapy, can be considered an ancient science, having been used even during the time of Hippocrates, the father of medicine. In modern times, it has grown from simple massaging techniques to more complicated treatments using manual therapy, modalities such as electric current, and ultraviolet light, among others, to address a musculo-skeletal injury or condition.

Early Beginnings of Physical Therapy

In 460 BC, a Greek physician named Hector practiced a technique he called hydrotherapy, which means water treatment in Greek. The UK recognized physical therapy in 1894 as a specialized branch of nursing speciality, which then was regulated by the Chartered Society. Shortly after, official physiotherapy programs were offered by countries such as New Zealand in 1913, and the U.S in 1914. In the United States, the term physical therapy is generally used, and the first recorded practice of physical therapy was noted in the Walter Reed College and Hospital in Portland, Oregon. Read more…

Beginning a Physiotherapy Career

Copyright (c) 2008 Steven Magill

The physiotherapy career is a healthcare profession which deals with movement disorders of the body arising from certain conditions or illnesses. Treatment through physiotherapy can also be more efficient and cheap than other traditional medication or therapy.

Usually, the person who performs physiotherapy is called a physical therapist. However, there are also other professionals who perform some physiotherapy practices, like chiropractors or caregivers. The physiotherapy career is very broad and has various classifications. Examples of these classifications are psychological sickness, physical rehabilitation, occupational health, and care for the aging. Read more…

Physiotherapy to Treat Sports Injuries

Sports injury just like any injury obtained from other accidents can be absolutely tragic as well as traumatic. The physical and mental stress that are brought by the injury do not discriminate professional athletes from the amateur ones. The injury, if left untreated or not properly managed may actually affect and ultimately ruin the athlete’s promising career. Athletes who are just starting to make a name for themselves in their sports event may find it rather difficult or even impossible to continue in that very physical and competitive field of endeavor. The possibility to incurring physical injuries is part of the risks taken by the athletes regardless of the sports event in which they compete. Knowing what should be done in case of injury is a must for each individual to remember. The good news is, aside from the modern medical technology, physiotherapy has recently been made available to treat specific sports injuries.

The physiotherapy treatment in the case of sports injuries is normally given after the assigned doctors are certain that the patient is already safe for such procedure. Prior to that, doctors may have taken x-rays to determine the gravity of the damage to the bones. If a fracture occurred, broken bones should be set first by keeping the injured part in a cast or a splint to secure it. This is necessary to avoid complications which might worsen the condition and hinder the healing of the bones. Once the cast or splint is removed, the physiotherapists will then begin with their work. Since the muscles were kept inactive for some time, it takes a lot of effort for both the patient and physiotherapist to bring it to its optimum condition. Read more…

Physiotherapy to Help Pain Management

Copyright (c) 2008 Steven Magill

Chronic pain, especially in the back and in the head, plagues a large percent of the populace. This painful condition might be traced back to an injury or to a disease. Whatever the cause, the anguish that it brings can make one do almost anything to have relief and comfort.

Individuals suffering from this recurring malady usually consult medical doctors for ways of alleviating the agonizing pain that they feel. They often go through a procedure which includes a series of tests to establish the reason of the painful condition and of course the prescription of medications to be taken by the patient. Most of the medications prescribed can do wonders in blocking the pain. Unfortunately, these medications also have ensuing side effects. The consequences can be in the form of damages in the organs like liver and kidneys, or it can be an addiction to the medication. Anti-pain medications such as Vicodin help alleviate the distressing condition of the patient but it is also prone to abuse. An individual can become dependent on these anti-pain medications which make matters worse. This spurred doctors to endorse a combination of medication and the use of physiotherapy to counteract the problem of how to cope with pain. Read more…

Why Use Physiotherapy to Treat Back Pain

Copyright (c) 2008 Steven Magill

Physiotherapy dates back to the ancient times but the modern practice of this allied medical care started in the 1920s. It is used to address conditions like recurring pain, musculoskeletal disorders, and movement disorders. The health care professional who is trained in this field of endeavour is known as a physiotherapist or a physical therapist.

Nowadays, the services of physiotherapists are widely sought by a large number of people who suffer from a wide variety of afflictions. The most common of which is back ache. It used to be that when an individual has backache, he goes directly to a doctor. At present, he has another option and that is to engage the assistance of a physical therapist. Read more…

Physiotherapy of Your Shoulder

The function of the human arm is to allow placement of the hand in useful positions so the hands can perform activities where the eyes can see them. Because of the huge range of positions required the shoulder is very flexible with a large motion range, but this is at the expense of some reduced strength and greatly reduced stability. A “soft tissue joint” is often a description of the shoulder, indicating it is the tendons, muscles and ligaments which are important to the joint’s function. Shoulder treatment and rehabilitation is a core physiotherapy skill.

The shoulder joint is constructed from the socket of the scapula and the humeral head, the ball at the top of the upper arm bone. The head of the upper arm is a large ball and important tendons insert onto it to move and stabilise the shoulder, but the shoulder socket, the glenoid, is small in comparison and very shallow. A cartilage rim, the labrum of the glenoid, deepens the socket and adds to stability. The acromio-clavicular joint lies above the shoulder joint proper and provides dynamic stability during arm movements, being made up from part of the scapula and the outer end of the clavicle. Read more…

Physiotherapy for Arthritic Pets

There have been great advances in the medical management of arthritis in pets but only recently has the veterinary world embraced the multitude of theories and complimentary therapies widely used within the medical world. One of the most proven methods of maintaining mobility in arthritic joints is physiotherapy (otherwise known as physical therapy) and the more advanced the mobility problems are, the more important this complimentary therapy becomes. In this article I hope to introduce you to the concepts and terminology of physiotherapy so that you can approach your veterinarian and see whether it may benefit your pet.

Warming up before exercise

We all know we should warm up before exercise and this applies for pets too, especially if they have stiffened joints due to arthritis. Warming up literally means warming up the muscles. This reduces the stiffness in the ligaments, tendons and muscles and also greatly increases blood supply and oxygen to the limbs. A method used in physiotherapy is to use warm compresses to emulate this warming up proces in particularly stiff joints. Simply take a warm hand towel and place it in a plastic bag (please ensure that it is not too hot) and apply it to the stiff joints. This is especially useful first thing in the morning when your pet awakes as this is the time tha joints will be at their stiffest. Once the joints are warmed up they can then be flexed and extended passively to increase the lossening of stiff muscles and connective tissues. Do this for 5 minutes before exercise and when your pet starts the day to help soothe and prepare their stiff joints for exercise. Read more…

Physiotherapy and Stretching

The limitations in flexibility which people exhibit are of interest to a large group of professions from medicine to physiotherapy, osteopathy and chiropractic. Yoga and other eastern traditions have employed stretching techniques called asanas for thousands of years although this was not their primary purpose. The eastern martial arts, such as karate, judo and taekwondo, also emphasise flexibility in the performance of these comprehensive martial ways of living. Flexibility is not precisely defined but in anatomical terms it mostly refers to the ability of joints to go through a particular range of motion.

Ballistic versus Static Stretching

Stretching, when you get down to details, has a lot of controversial and uncertain matters which are unresolved. The pros and cons of static and ballistic stretching is one discussion point. Static stretching is overwhelmingly more common but most activities and sports have a large dynamic component so ballistic stretching may reflect more accurately the actual physical challenges. Ballistic stretching can be more interesting and reduce the boredom associated with static regimes. Read more…

Physiotherapy – Pain Syndromes

The gleno-humeral joint, known in lay terms as the shoulder, is a vital part of the links in the upper limb and responsible for our ability to place our hands where we can see them to perform activities. Because flexibility is a prime requirement the shoulder is a less stable joint with moderate muscle power and a large range of motion. It is described as a “soft tissue joint”, implying that the joint’s functional ability is dependent on its soft and not its hard components. Physiotherapists are closely involved in treating and rehabilitating the shoulder, dealing with the muscles, ligaments and tendons.

The shoulder joint is constructed from the socket of the scapula and the humeral head, the ball at the top of the upper arm bone. The head of the upper arm is a large ball and important tendons insert onto it to move and stabilise the shoulder, but the shoulder socket, the glenoid, is small in comparison and very shallow. A cartilage rim, the labrum of the glenoid, deepens the socket and adds to stability. The acromio-clavicular joint lies above the shoulder joint proper and provides dynamic stability during arm movements, being made up from part of the scapula and the outer end of the clavicle. Read more…

Physiotherapy Can Help Cervical Nerve Root Neck Pain

Cervical radiculopathy is a pain syndrome involving one of the cervical nerve roots, with the C7 root (60%) and the C6 root (25%) being the most commonly involved. In younger persons this is due a direct injury which compromises the nerve exit or due to an acute disc prolapse. In older age groups this syndrome can also occur, but in this case is due to narrowing of the nerve exit by arthritic joints and ligament enlargement, disc bulging and bony outgrowths. Cervical nerve root pain referred to physiotherapists for the management of neck pain and arm pain.

The regular lifting of weights over 12 kilograms (25 pounds), operating or driving machinery which vibrates and cigarette smoking are all risk factors for cervical radiculopathy. This kind of neck and arm pain is much less common than the lumbar syndrome of back and leg pain (sciatica). The discs between the cervical vertebrae allow loads to be transmitted down the spine and damp down unwanted shocks. The joint, disc, bone and ligamentous structures form exit spaces for the nerves on the sides of the vertebrae, with up to a third of their space taken up by the nerve. This space can be compromised if degenerative changes occur nearby, leading to nerve compression symptoms. Read more…