Physiotherapy is a health care profession which provides services to individuals in order to develop maintain and restore maximum movement and functional ability throughout life.
Physiotherapy is used to expedite recovery in orthopedic, cardiopulmonary, neurology, pediatrics, geriatrics and sports related injuries. The conditions can vary from sprain, strain, frozen shoulder, post- fracture stiffness, arthritis, low back pain and neck pain to stroke, paralysis, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy etc.
Treatment focuses on reduction of pain and swelling, improvement in range of motion, healing of soft tissue structures, soft tissue relaxation, pre and post-operative management, improvement in gross and fine motor skills, balance and co-ordination, strength and endurance as well sensory and cognitive integration, with the effective utilization of manual therapy and electrical modalities specifically IFT, TENS, Laser, Wax bath, Ultrasonic Therapy, Short Wave Diathermy, Micro Wave Diathermy.
Physiotherapy at ISIC aims for complete rehabilitation of its patients through their active involvement thus helping them to lead a life of maximum functional independence.
Sports injuries and car accidents, among other injuries, can cause spinal cord injury. The range of spinal cord injury is wide. Some of these injuries are fairly minor and will heal well with a limited amount of physiotherapy, while others need physiotherapy for the rest of their lives.
As always with physiotherapy, the first step is evaluation. A plan is formulated that includes therapies specific to the kind of spinal cord injury the patient has. Neck injuries can cause quadriplegia, which requires special treatment.
An important issue in spinal cord injury is the level of the damage. If a physiotherapy program is not followed faithfully, the spine will begin to atrophy below the level of the spinal cord injury. The spine will shrink and the whole body below that point will become weaker as time goes by.
It is important that spinal cord injury patients get exercises of some form. They are prone to osteoporosis and heart problems, among other conditions. If there is a total lack of exercise, these risk factors become even more pronounced.
Physiotherapy for spinal cord injury involves exercising and stimulating the nerves and muscles below the level of the damage. This allows patients with spinal cord injury to stay in good physical condition, that way, if a cure becomes available, they will not be too weak to benefit from it.
There are many restorative therapies in physiotherapy for spinal cord injury patients. These include electrical stimulation, biofeedback, vibrational therapy, laser therapy and other stimulation activities. Aqua therapy / Hydrotherapy is also an effective mode of treatment for spinal cord injury patients.
With all these therapies, spinal cord injury patients can sometimes restore themselves to earlier functioning. Other times, they can simply keep their bodies from deteriorating as they wait for a cure.
