« Physiotherapy Associates Announces New Multiple Sclerosis Specialty Treatment Program
5 Steps to Becoming a Physical Therapist »

Role of Technology in Physical Therapy

As we race ahead with our technological advances in the 21st century, one area which has kept up with the pace is the world of physical therapy and rehabilitation. Physical therapy and rehabilitation primarily aim to restore and enhance the movement of the various function areas of the body after a major disease, accident or even cases of substance abuse. To restore the original quality of life, it is imperative that physical therapy should be extended beyond the traditional methods. The way people approach physical therapy has undergone a drastic change. The field itself is lucrative enough to attract brilliant minds. At the same time, there is sufficient challenge for those who want excitement in their job.

Physical therapy and heat treatment

Physical therapy is prescribed for a wide variety of rehabilitation programs involving burns, cancer, amputations, cardiac problems, neurological problems, spinal cord injuries, trauma, arthritis, and so on. The traditional ways of physical therapy involved the use of stationary bicycles, walking aids, wheelchairs, parallel bars, free weights etc. Heat treatment is very commonly used these days for physical therapy. Hot water compresses, ultrasound, paraffin wax, warm baths electric current of high frequency and short wave radiations are being used as stimulants for improving the circulation and to relax muscles. Cold treatment which involves soaking in cold water and the use of ice packs is also prevalent. Whirlpool soaking is turning out to be another way of relieving pain in muscle spasms.

Electrotherapy

There are quite a few variations of electrotherapy which are used in the current age. TENS or trans-cutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, IFC or interferential current, Russian stim for strengthening of degenerated muscles and usage of micro currents to use small intensity currents to restore compromised tissues, are some of the methods. Galvanic stimulation or iontophoresis is another form of electrotherapy. TENS is one of the more prevalent methods, which in layman’s terms, blocks slow transmission nerve fibres that carry pain signals from the brain. It is therefore perfect for physical therapy to relieve chronic and acute pain. Interestingly, each of the above methods uses varying combinations of voltage, current and modularity to vary the physical therapy for relieving different forms of pain being induced from various sources.

Virtual Rehabilitation

Virtual rehabilitation is one of the latest modes of physical therapy, which in simpler terms can be seen as a way of stimulating the brain through virtual reality. In this form of therapy, the patient is made to interact with characters on-screen as well as objects in a wide array of sporting and adventure activities. These are designed as part of an overall exercise regimen that is designed by the clinician keeping the patient’s handicaps in mind. Immersive Therapy Solutions keep track of the hand-eye coordination, movement and cortical restoration of the patient. There are various stages for this form of physical therapy as the patient continues to be rehabilitated. This form of therapy is quite popular for those with cognitive impairment, traumatic brain injuries, autism, cerebral palsy or strokes in the past. Mobility and motor movement are greatly improved through this technology.

Related Blogs

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 14th, 2010 at 12:12 am and is filed under Physical Therapy Software. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply