What Is Physiotherapy?

If you have a musculo-skeletal problem or injury, you might be given a referral to a physiotherapy clinic.  If you have gone to one before, you know what to expect.  If you are new to this service, you might ask, what is physiotherapy?  

Physiotherapy is also known as physical therapy.  That answers the question of what is physiotherapy for many people.  However, if you have not had any dealings with this form of treatment, you need to know more.  

A type of health care, physiotherapy concerns itself with providing physical healing methods for many different kinds of injuries and illnesses.  Some of these techniques are done in a hands-on manner, by using massage or manipulation of the musculo-skeletal system.  Knowing what is physiotherapy is crucial to getting this kind of help.  

Education is a part of what is physiotherapy.  A physiotherapist will teach a patient how to care for their injuries.  He will teach exercises to do at home so that therapy can continue beyond the walls of the clinic or hospital.  He will teach ways to overcome difficulties that cannot be cured.  

Another part of what is physiotherapy is rehabilitation.  Patients have injuries from sports, car accidents, or assault.  These injuries can be treated through physiotherapy. Given the right treatments and an injury that will respond to treatment, much progress can be made.  Full functioning may be regained.  It may even be possible for them to go back to work rather than being laid up at home.   

An answer to what is physiotherapy is what kinds of treatments physiotherapists use.  Heat, ice, and ultrasound are used to relieve pain and stiffness.  Massage, chiropractic, and other hands-on methods are important.  All these methods tend to promote better health, both physical and psychological.  

Equipment for helping patients regain their strength and mobility are a part of what is physiotherapy.  This equipment may allow a person who is partially paralyzed to get the most exercise possible.  This is crucial in maintaining the integrity of their spines and muscles.  

What is physiotherapy?  It is a carefully planned and executed treatment strategy.  It is based upon assessments of the conditions that patients suffer.  If all goes well, the patient will return to their original condition.  If this is not possible, the goal is for the patient to reach a goal that is the best movement and lack of pain that is possible.  

People who are referred to a clinic may ask, what is physiotherapy?  However, they will be given quick answers to this question.  After an initial evaluation, they will be scheduled for treatments like ultrasound or acupuncture.  They will be assigned exercises to do at home.  A good physiotherapist will begin treatment right away.  

People, who ask what is physiotherapy, often do not consider the preventative side of the field.  It is a part of the work of practitioners of physiotherapy to encourage exercises and postures that will help patients avoid physical injuries and conditions requiring their services.  An excellent physiotherapist will have fewer return patients, but the flow of people needing physiotherapy continues.  
