Many medical treatment regimens go hand-in-hand with a prescribed program of rehabilitation.
Full recovery often requires a supporting program that enables the patient to regain as fully and safely as possible, their mobility, range of activity, independence, quality of life, and even self-esteem. That’s why physical therapy is an integral part of rehabilitation.
It improves physical skills, teaches how to move your body, or use necessary equipment such as canes, crutches, walkers, leg braces, or wheelchairs. It includes exercises for regaining function, reducing stress, relieving discomfort and preventing permanent disability or future injury.
Intercoastal Medical Group’s comprehensive patient services include Physical Therapy focused on providing high quality rehabilitation services at their two dedicated Florida locations in Sarasota and Bradenton. Their highly trained therapists bring advanced qualifications and experience, with their main goal getting you moving with as much function and as little pain as possible.
Coupled with a personal approach, their therapy programs and patient education are designed with the patient in mind. The goal is to achieve long-term positive treatment outcomes and teaching ways to avoid future injury.
What is Physical therapy?
Physical therapists are dedicated to helping reduce an individual’s limitations and pain, while increasing performance and mobility. Physical therapy aims to rehabilitate and recondition the body for increased mobility and independent function.
A physical therapist evaluates strengths, limitations, and independent functional skill levels. He assesses muscle movement, strength, coordination, balance, and endurance. These results and patient input forms the baseline for the formulation of an appropriate customized treatment plan.
As patient conditions change, the program is adjusted to meet new goals, and may include a home exercise program, or open gym.
Physical Therapy Includes Education and Training in:
- Safe performance of daily living tasks
- Protecting joints and avoiding re-injury
- Using assistive devices
- Home exercises
- Safety tips at home
- Caregiver education
Intercoastal Medical Group’s Physical Therapy Programs
- Rehabilitation programs including manual therapy, therapeutic exercise, and suitable modalities
- Orthopedic manual physical therapy
- Medical condition management
- Postural restoration manual techniques and exercises
- Counterstrain to resolve muscle guarding and tension patterns
- Sports medicine
- Conditioning programs that increase strength and physical endurance
- Consultations for specific conditions and lifestyle changes
Conditions that Require Physical Therapy
Injuries, disease, bed rest, or chemotherapy can all affect the performance of the human body, leading to lower stamina, decreased muscle mobility, paralysis, or poor balance. Sensation, strength, or coordination can also be impaired.
Physical limitations arising from the following conditions may interfere with normal activities and movements:
- Spinal conditions: back, neck, arm, or leg pain
- Neuromuscular dysfunction
- Arthritis
- Shoulder/upper extremity conditions
- Postural imbalance
- Post-surgical rehabilitation or post-rehabilitation
- Total/partial hip, knee, or shoulder replacement
- Sports injuries
Most Popular Physical Therapies
Physical therapy involves exercise that is specifically designed for individual injuries, illnesses and medical conditions, or to help head off potential health problems. This is in addition to regular daily activities.
- Aquatic Therapy is physical exercise in a water environment. Water provides support, buoyancy and gentle resistance. it is suitable for many orthopedic conditions, neurological disorders, and spinal cord injuries. Chronic pain, muscle spasms, and arthritis can be alleviated. Major post surgical events such as amputation, polio syndrome, and other conditions can be treated with aquatic therapy.
- Exercise Therapy trains the body to higher levels of functional efficiency and optimization of all body systems. It minimizes injury, pain, and muscle/bone deterioration. It improves flexibility, strength, endurance, and posture. Exercise therapy includes strength training, aerobics, and even yoga.
- Manual Therapy is a generic term applied to treatments that mainly involve using the therapist’s hands:
- Massage Therapy stimulates and improves circulation. It aids the removal of lymphatic waste. Massage relieves stiffness, pain, and improves flexibility, range of motion, and tissue elasticity. It can relax and refresh the whole body.
- Mobilization Therapy uses slow, regulated movements to adjust bones and joints into position. This loosens tight tissues surrounding a joint and helps with flexibility and alignment.
- Manipulation Therapy applies pressure to affected joints with hands or a special device. This controlled force can be gentle, strong, slow or fast, as required.
Common Physical Therapy Modalities
- Ice-packs, cold compresses, cooling sprays or lotions can relieve pain, swelling, and inflammation from injuries and arthritis.
- Heat packs and compresses relax and sooth stiff muscles and soft tissues by increasing blood circulation, allowing them to heal.
- Ultrasound therapy utilizes high-pitched sound waves to ease muscle spasms, relieve pain and inflammation, and promote healing.
- Electrical stimulation uses low-level electrical currents to reduce pain, contract muscles, and is being researched for the possible healing of wounds and broken bones.
- Vibration, temperature, and transcutaneous nerve stimulation (TENS).
Physical Therapy for Rehabilitation
- Progressive Strengthening Exercise increases muscle strength, tone, size, and function, by gradually increasing weight or resistance while exercising. It is also known as “exercise progression,” “progressive resistance,” or the “overload principle.”
- Neuromuscular re-education focuses on restoring normal movement. Nerves send signals between muscles and brain that direct movement. These patterns are affected when nerves or muscles experience damage or injury.
- Balance retraining and vestibular rehabilitation therapies treat balance disorders. Neurological conditions, trauma, disease, and even certain toxic medications can affect balance and the vestibular systems in the ears, and visual processing.
- Transfer Training refers to safe, alternate methods of moving your body from one surface to another. Neurological disorders, orthopedic conditions, and surgery can all affect mobility.
- Shoulder rehabilitation can reduce pain and restore function to an injured shoulder. Shoulder rehabilitation therapies apply to rotator cuff injuries, fractures, dislocations, and joint, nerve, or muscle disorders.
- Gait Training focuses on strength, endurance, motion, balance, and coordination to help you walk and run after you have experienced a circumstance that affects your ambulation.
- Hand Therapy is a specialized area of rehabilitation, conducted by an occupational therapist with advanced skills, or a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT). Such therapists focus on rehabilitation for conditions and injuries that affect the hand and arm.
- Myofascial release, a form of soft tissue manipulation, is used by physical and occupational therapists to stretch tight and sore areas to relieve pain, restore tissue health, increase motion, and improve function.
Our dedicated therapists are all highly qualified in up to the minute techniques of Physical therapy. Intercoastal Medical Group: dedicated to your well-being for life. Request an appointment online to learn more.
