Physical therapy helps patients in all phases of healing, from initial diagnosis to restorative and preventive stages of recovery. Physical therapy may be a standalone option, or it may support other treatments.
Some patients are referred to have physical therapy a doctor, while others seek therapy themselves.
Typical modalities:
- Electrical stimulation (e-stim): There are two types of e-stim. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation reduces pain. By contrast, neuromuscular electrical stimulation works to stimulate muscular motor units to improve muscular engagement.
- Heat, moist heat, and cold therapy: These may provide benefits to a range of conditions.
- Stretching with Synergy bands to increase ROM and strength.
Common conditions physical therapy may help with
Physical therapy can provide supplementary treatment to a wide variety of medical conditions.
The goal of physical therapy is to optimize recovery/ educate a person on how to optimize their movement patterns.
Some conditions that could benefit from physical therapy are:
- Post surgical rehabilitation
- conditions that affect the hand, such as carpal tunnel syndrome and trigger finger
- musculoskeletal dysfunction, including back pain, rotator cuff tears, and temporomandibular joint disorders
- neurological conditions, such as stroke, spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, vestibular dysfunction, and traumatic brain injuries
. sports-related injuries, such as concussion and tennis elbow
- Car accident injuries
Benefits of physical therapy
Depending on the reason for treatment, the benefits of physical therapy may include:
- pain management with reduced need for opioids
- avoiding surgery
- improved mobility and movement
- recovery from injury or trauma
- recovery from stroke or paralysis
- fall prevention
- improved balance
- management of age-related medical problems
