A few months ago, I wrote about why we should try to avoid pain management with medicines like “opioids”. I briefly described a few alternative pain management in that article. Physical therapy is well known for pain management. Depending on the diagnosis and therapists, physical therapy can do miracles with pain in as short as one session. How do we physical therapy work on pain? Here, I want to discuss a few pain management methods that physical therapy use. Some of these treatment options are very easy to utilize at home with no extra supervision. On the other hand, other options need close supervision of licensed health care professionals or may even need a physician’s order to initiate one. Continue reading “Pain Management by Physical Therapy: Alternative Methods to Opioids”
ALS: A Comprehensive Rehabilitation Guide
ALS is otherwise also known by its full name amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It is a type of progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects upper and lower motor neurons in the brain and the spinal cord. It comes from the Greek language where “A” means no. “Myo” refers to muscle, and “Trophic” means nourishment – “No muscle nourishment.” The motor neurons are responsible for initiating voluntary muscle movements. They also act as a bridge between the brain and the muscles for crucial communication. So, as the name suggests, when a muscle does not have any nourishment, it “atrophies” or wastes away. As the motor neurons degenerate, it leads to a hardened area in the brain or scarring which is also known as “sclerosis”. Continue reading “ALS: A Comprehensive Rehabilitation Guide”
Five Pregnancy Exercises that an Expectant Mother Must Do.
Carrying a little angel within you is a delicate yet cherished time for every woman. Depending on age, and medical status, every woman reacts to changes in hormonal level and physical status differently. It is recommended from almost all medical sources that an expecting woman should try to be active as long as she can be. There are many benefits of exercising during these crucial nine months. Pregnancy exercises help to improve physical mobility, energy level and also helps increase psychological well being.
Being active, however, does not mean running a marathon, or participating in a triathlon (although there are some exceptions). Being on your feet, and performing your daily activities may sometimes feel like running an Olympic race. However, the 5 to 10 minutes of walking can help a woman and her baby to be healthy. In this article, I want to discuss five MUST do Pregnancy exercises for a pregnant woman. Remember, these are kind of mandatory for all woman but the list does not end with this.
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Cervical Disc Herniation: A Physical Therapist’s approach to reduce Neck pain
Feeling numbness and tingling on the fingers or hand? Having trouble holding a cup of coffee – you feel like you will drop the cup soon? Feeling weakness in hand? Are these complaints familiar to you? Cervical Disc Herniation with an impinged nerve is one the most common cause for PT visits. One vertebra protrudes posteriorly (backward), anteriorly (forward – less common) or sideways (medially or laterally – again rare), impinging a cervical nerve passing through the cervical foramen. This impingement or pressing down of the nerve brings symptoms that are uncomfortable. Continue reading “Cervical Disc Herniation: A Physical Therapist’s approach to reduce Neck pain”
How to Perform Shoulder Exercise Isometrically.
Shoulder exercise is done with a wide range of variations. Isometric contractions are one of the ways to perform shoulder exercise. In my previous articles, I discussed how to perform isometric exercises of the elbow, wrist, knees, and low back. Isometric exercises are exercises that do not produce any visible body movements. The length of the muscle fibers does not change while performing this exercise. That is why these exercises are a good option to consider when a joint is in a cast or immobilized. They are also a good option to initiate your exercise protocol when a person demonstrates severe weakness or pain. Continue reading “How to Perform Shoulder Exercise Isometrically.”
Body Neglect: A Challenge in Stroke Recovery and How to Treat it.
Body Neglect of an affected limb is a real challenge in stroke recovery. Stroke Recovery starts from using proper position, facilitating awareness of affected extremity, and use it in a functional task. Along with proper positioning challenge, another challenge that we, as rehab professionals, usually face, is facilitating the use of neglected/affected side after hours in stroke patients. It can start by talking and having a casual conversation with the patient on providing some cues to use that affected limb during evenings or weekends. When we in-service the non-rehab staff regarding how to facilitate the use of an affected limb, we need to make sure that we convey the important message that it may not be for all stroke patients. A patient needs to be ready to use that paretic limb during non-rehab hours. Otherwise, just facing constant failures while attempting to use a paretic limb, will only cause more aggression, depression and no motivation to use that affected limb.
Continue reading “Body Neglect: A Challenge in Stroke Recovery and How to Treat it.”
Rheumatoid Arthritis: Physical Therapy to Manage Pain and Stiffness
Physical Therapy plays a crucial part in the management of pain and stiffness related to Rheumatoid Arthritis. Rheumatoid Arthritis is a type of autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the body’s joints causing chronic inflammation of the joints and joint lines. In addition, rheumatoid arthritis can cause extra-articular inflammation which leads to injury to other organs in the body. As a result, RA is a type of systemic illness and is the same as rheumatoid disease.
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Chronic Wrist Pain: Guide to Conservative Pain Management
Wrist pain can occur due to several reasons and can be acute or chronic. A pain is categorized as chronic when it lasts for more than 3 to 6 months, gradually worsens or reoccurs even after medical treatments. Chronic wrist pain can be due to work-related musculoskeletal disorders, overuse injury to muscles, ligaments, etc. It can also be a side effect of prolonged use of medications or being in wrong postures for extended periods. As per the CDC, arthritis and wrong ergonomics are some of the main factors leading to chronic wrist pain. Continue reading “Chronic Wrist Pain: Guide to Conservative Pain Management”
Tips to Develop Good Relationship between Therapist and Assistant
Working in the healthcare industry is tough. Being a therapist is even tougher. You are constantly being challenged by a patient and their families for active participation. Your manager looks at you to complete your pending paperwork. The other team members might be pushing a patient for discharge. And you have a team member (PTA or PT) who gives you hard time for the plan of care, or your techniques, the school went to or any other small thing that he or she can talk about. Yes, I am talking about that therapist or therapist assistant who constantly finds a problem in you or your ideas. This article discusses how to improve the relationship between the therapist and assistant.
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Exercises and stretches for instant neck pain relief
Who hasn’t had neck pain at some point in their life? Neck pain is probably one of the most common chronic pain complaints of today’s world, which results mostly from the improper use of electronics (eg. improper monitor alignment, improper use of cell phones, etc) and bad posture causing muscle or ligament strain. The pain can be greatly reduced or even alleviated by performing some simple neck exercises and stretches. The list below will guide you through these neck exercises as well as stretches that help in reducing neck discomfort and pain.
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5 Tips to Improve Your Communication Skills As a Health Care Professional
Communication is crucial in health care. The form of communication can be immediate, FYIs, or education to patient and or family members. Effective and timely communication builds trust among team members, patient and care providers. Here are a few tips for effective communication.
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Isometric Exercises to Strengthen Elbows and reduce Elbow Pain
Just like any isometrics, elbow isometrics are used and prescribed to reduce muscle or tendon pain and swelling. Few common conditions like tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) or golfer’s elbow (medial epicondylitis) make elbow isometrics more important than isometrics of other joints. In this article, I discuss how to perform two main elbow isometrics with printable handouts. This is Elbow flexion isometric and elbow extension isometric. Continue reading “Isometric Exercises to Strengthen Elbows and reduce Elbow Pain”
Wrist Isometric Exercises: How to exercise Wrist when in Cast
Wrist Isometric exercises are used to reduce pain and manage the swelling. These exercises are done in the early case of injury, or while the wrist is in a cast or in an immobilizer. Isometric exercises do not allow any muscle lengthening or any visible movement in the body. So it is a little tricky to understand and to perform correctly. However, with the help of the clinician, you can learn how to perform these exercises accurately. In this article, I want to describe some important wrist isometric exercises. Continue reading “Wrist Isometric Exercises: How to exercise Wrist when in Cast”
Exercises to Relieve Acute or Chronic Wrist Pain
Wrist pain is extremely common among athletes, healthcare professionals, and anyone who is involved in lifting/carrying of heavy/large objects. A small pull here and there, happening over time, can easily damage wrist muscles or ligaments. An injury due to overuse of the wrist can result in chronic wrist pain. On the other hand, a forceful sudden pull is capable of tearing the ligaments or muscles around the wrist immediately causing an acute onset of pain. I will discuss how to treat and prevent both acute and chronic wrist pain. Continue reading “Exercises to Relieve Acute or Chronic Wrist Pain”
Guide To Perform Cardiopulmonary Evaluation for Physical Therapists (PT)
This is a quick reference guide to perform Physical Therapy Cardiopulmonary evaluation. For details on history taking and general guidelines for PT evaluation reference card, click here.
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