What is Physiotherapy?

Physiotherapy is a wide ranging term used to refer to a branch of medicine that deals with helping patients to heal by increasing or regaining their strength , flexibility and range of motion.  It includes both assistive and patient education (or reeducation).  I mention that Physiotherapy is wide ranging because there are several different specialties of Physiotherapy which often brings different expectations to different people depending on their prior experience and exposure to this field.

Different Types of Physiotherapy Deal with Different Challenges
GERIATRICS: Hip Replacements, Balance Disorders, Arthritis, etc.
PEDIATRICS: Developmental Delays, Cognitive and Sensory functioning, Balance and Coordination, etc.
NEUROLOGICAL: ALS, Brain Injury, MS, Stroke, etc.
CARDIOVASCULAR:  Heart Attack, Pulmonary Fibrosis, Recovery from Cardiac or Pulmonary Surgery, etc.
ORTHOPEDIC: Musculoskeletal System, Recovery from Orthopedic Surgery, Joints, Sports Injuries, etc.

Physiotherapy in Our Office
In our office we deal primarily with Musculoskeletal and Orthopedic challenges.  We may prescribe some rehabilitative exercises for you to do at home and train you on how to do them or we may provide assistive exercise such as Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation and Traction / Joint Mobilization.
We also provide orthopedic physiotherapy modalities such as UltraSound, Interferential Electrical Muscle Stimulation, Moist Heat Therapy and Cryotherapy (Ice).

Physiotherapy is an Important and Integral Part of Your Therapy Program
Damaged muscles tend to not be used due to either the damage or resulting pain.  In fact, pain is an indication that you have already lost 65% of function in the affected area.
This loss of function and disuse causes the muscle tissue to loose circulation of blood, lymph and vital nutrients needed to heal.  This initiates a vicious cycle of disuse that perpetuates pain and stiffness.  As this cycle continues untreated, muscle atrophy may occur.
Properly prescribed physiotherapy and modalities can revitalize the injured area and re-establish circulation channels for proper nourishment and removal of waste products.  Physiotherapy is one of the best ways to reduce or prevent complications from injuries and can be easily integrated with Chiropractic, Massage, and Acupuncture therapies utilizing the most recent research on core stabilization and spinal rehabilitation.