If you have currently experienced any injury or illness which is significantly affecting your mobility, then your doctor may suggest you go for physical therapy treatments which are proved to be very effective in combating neck and back pain.
Neck and back pain
Physical therapy is known to be one of the most important aspects of your treatment. It, when combined with other therapies, helps you to get back to your normal life.
To understand this well, first of all, it becomes very important to understand exactly what orthopedic physical therapy is and how it works to provide you with the maximum benefits.
What Is Orthopedic Physical Therapy?
This is considered to be a mode of treatment that helps you to effectively recover from an illness or injury that affects the musculoskeletal system of your body.
Your musculoskeletal system mainly consists of your bones and muscles along with all the structures that hold them together such as joints, tendons, ligaments, etc.
Orthopedic physical therapy also helps to recover from any persistent neck and back pain.
The main purpose of this PT approach is to perfectly optimize the physical ability of your body which includes:
- Reduced pain
- Improved stability and balance
- Strengthened muscles
- Reduced stiffness and swelling
- Enhanced Mobility
- Proper and fast recovery from surgery
You would be able to feel the difference in each of the physical therapy sessions. So, this helps you to feel better gradually and also you would be able to resume your everyday activities like before.
Differences Existing In Between General Physical Therapy And Orthopedic Physical Therapy
One of the sub-specialty of physical therapy is known to be orthopedic physical therapy which specifically deals with a musculoskeletal system like the bones and muscles.
In that regard, the physical therapists can choose to specialize in any of the aspects involving geriatric, orthopedic, cardiopulmonary, pediatric, or neurological PT depending on their interests.
Orthopedic physical therapists possess advanced training which helps them to effectively treat many conditions of the musculoskeletal system. They have the in-depth knowledge and tends to provide the targeted and most advanced therapies which help you to recover from:
- Neck and back pain
- Orthopedic surgery
- Stroke
- Amputation
- Joint replacement
- Hip, knee, shoulder, or elbow pain
- Arthritis
- Overuse injuries involve tennis elbow, carpal tunnel, etc.
- Ligament tears
So, if you are suffering from any of these issues, then all that you need is to opt for the assistance of a physical therapist who can effectively treat these orthopedic conditions.
Another important thing is to check whether they have additional credentials and training in the orthopedic niche or not.
Things That You Should Expect During Orthopedic Physical Therapy Sessions
PT sessions can be different for every person. Your therapist first checks your body conditions and depending on which, they devise a customized treatment program for your specific needs.
They again have standard treatment modalities that they focus on using for your orthopedic conditions.
Below are mentioned some of the important things that you can expect during your next PT session such as:
- Exercise
Exercise is the most important component of physical therapy sessions. To effectively improve your physical capacity, all that you need is to perform a wide variety of targeted cardiovascular, strengthening, flexibility, and stability exercises.
Also, these exercises are proved to be very effective in lessening pain, reducing weakness, improving posture, and a lot more.
- Therapeutic technologies
Some of the most common technologies that are used in physical therapy include lasers, ultrasound, and electrical stimulation. Ultrasound makes use of sound waves for the creation of heat which augments healing by effectively improving the flow of blood.
On the other hand, electrical stimulation is considered to be a painless therapy that improves nerve function. Another technology i.e. lasers make use of light energy for the effective stimulation of tissue repair.
- Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy
Talking about manual physical therapy involves the use of hands-on techniques which help in the mobilization of your joints and muscles.
To perfectly enhance your motor function, often physical therapists make use of soft tissue massage, mobilization as well as traction exercises. But, in some of the cases, they may also incorporate ice and heat for swelling and pain.
- Assistive Devices
After diagnosing your condition, your physical therapist may suggest you some assistive devices like braces, walker, prosthetics, or orthotics. This is applicable if you have physical limitations.
Concluding Thoughts
In this way, orthopedic rehabilitation physical therapy works to effectively get rid of your persistent neck and back pain by training you on the best approaches.
A typical physical therapy session may last for an hour but in some complex situations, several hours may be recommended.
Depending on the severity of your condition, your physical therapist may take around several weeks to provide you the recovery you expect.
