Introduction

Physical Therapy often referred to as PT, is an exercise program that helps you to improve movement, relieve pain, encourage blood flow for faster healing, and restore your physical function and fitness level following an injury or surgery. It can be prescribed by your doctor as an individual treatment program or combined with other treatments and involves a combination of education, manual therapy, exercises, and techniques such as water therapy, heat, cold, electrical stimulation, and ultrasound.

The main goal of physical therapy is to make your daily activities such as walking, getting in and out of bed, or climbing stairs easier through a tailored exercise program under the guidance of a physical therapist and enable a more active and healthier lifestyle.

What is a Physical Therapist?

A physical therapist is a well-trained, skilled health care professional who facilitates improving movement and manages pain by safe stretching, conditioning, and strengthening exercise techniques. A physical therapist will examine your symptoms and activity level and create a treatment plan which primarily focuses on reducing your symptoms and facilitating early recovery. The different procedures used by a physical therapist depend upon an individual’s specific physical complaints, necessities, and goals.

Indications for Physical Therapy

Physical therapy is usually recommended to help you recover after certain surgeries, injuries, and long-term health problems such as arthritis.

Some of the conditions that physical therapy can help treat or aid in preventing include:

Musculoskeletal conditions such as arthritis, knee pain, back pain, and rotator cuff tears
Sports-related injuries, such as tennis elbow and concussion
Hand therapy for disorders such as trigger finger and carpal tunnel syndrome
Neurological disorders such as spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries
Pediatric disorders such as muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy
Women’s health and pelvic floor dysfunction, such as urinary incontinence
Cardiopulmonary disorders, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and post-myocardial infarction (MI)

Physical Therapy Treatments

Some of the types of physical therapy include:

Stretching Exercises: Surgery, age, and conditions such as arthritis and osteoporosis can cause inflammation and stiffness in your joints and muscles while restricting your movement. Physical therapists guide you step by step to stretch different areas of your body to restore flexibility and enhance the movement of joints and muscles.
Core-strengthening and Stability Exercises: Specific exercises are designed to make the core (pelvis and lower back) strong enough to support the whole body.
Traction: This physical therapy method helps to take pressure off damaged or compressed joints. Traction can be performed with the therapist’s hands or a piece of equipment and is considered useful for people with degenerative disc conditions, lower back pain, and neck pain.
Soft Tissue Mobilization and Myofascial Release: This is a form of manual physical therapy in which your physical therapist employs hands-on techniques on your muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia to break up adhesions, decrease pain and optimize soft tissue function.
Lymphedema Treatment: Our Certified Lymphedema Therapists are specially trained in Complete Decongestive Therapy to provide optimal care for lymphedema management. Our servcies provide one-on-one care for Manual Lymph Draining, Compression Therapy, and Decongestive Exercises. For more information on lymphedema signs, symptoms, and treatment please visit www.lymphnet.org
Joint Mobilizations: These techniques help to improve range of motion, decrease pain and optimize biomechanics.
Dry Needling: When dry needling is applied to an affected muscle or trigger point it can decrease muscle spasm, increase blood flow and reduce pain.
Graston Technique and Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization: Another manual therapy technique includes use of Stainless steel tools that have rounded edges, and are concave or convex in shape. The practitioner brushes and rubs the tools against the grain of the scar tissue. This can cause temporary inflammation but can also increase blood flow to the area being treated.
Taping Techniques: With varying types of tape (Kinesiotape and Athletic tape for example), clinicians can help support soft tissue and promote correct alignment and muscle activation patterns as well as decrease pain.
Functional Training – focused on controlled and meaningful movement appropriate for patients with reduced risk for injury or exacerbation of pain and other symptoms
Neurological Re-Training – important for both impairments of neurological processes due to pain (e.g. kinesthetic impairment) and neurologically impairing pathologies such as BPPV or Parkinson’s

Benefits of Physical Therapy

Some of the important benefits that physical therapy helps to achieve include:

Alleviate or eliminate pain
Improve range of motion
Avoid disability or surgery
Improve balance and prevent falls
Manage bowel or bladder problems
Recover from or prevent a sports injury
Manage lung and heart conditions
Recovery from childbirth
Manage vascular conditions and diabetes
Improve age-related conditions such as arthritis

Summary

Physical therapy is used to treat injuries, diseases, or deformities by application of various treatment modalities. With the supervision of your physical therapist, a well-structured physical therapy regimen consisting of stretching, strengthening, and stability exercises can help you achieve a quick recovery and return to your daily routines, as well as sports and other recreational activities.

Occupational Therapy

At the heart of occupational therapy is the transformative power of rehabilitation, a specialized field designed to restore and enhance your shoulder, arm, and hand function as well as your overall quality of life. Occupational therapists focus on helping individuals recover from injuries, surgeries, and conditions affecting the hands and upper extremities.

With a personalized approach, our skilled therapists utilize a range of techniques, including:

Custom Splinting: Creating tailored splints to support and protect injured areas, facilitating optimal healing and function.
Functional Exercises: Implementing targeted exercises to improve strength, flexibility, and coordination, allowing you to regain independence in daily activities.
Pain Management: Employing various modalities to alleviate discomfort and reduce inflammation, ensuring a smoother recovery process.
Activity and Environment Modification: Advising on changes to daily tasks and routines to accommodate any limitations, enhancing your ability to perform everyday activities with ease.

Whether recovering from a sports injury, managing a chronic condition, or rehabilitating after surgery, our occupational therapy services are designed to meet your unique needs and goals. Trust in our expertise to guide you through every step of your recovery journey, helping you get back to what matters most—living life to its fullest.