Do you have musculoskeletal aches and pains that go beyond temporary soreness after a vigorous gym workout? It’s time to visit an orthopedic specialist for a diagnosis and start on a treatment plan to help you regain lost mobility.
If you’ve never had physical therapy (PT), could it help you now? Or is PT only useful when you’re recovering from an operation?
Our board-certified orthopedic surgeons and physical therapists at Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine explain the role of physical therapy in orthopedic practice. It’s a standard of treatment we use when you need surgery for musculoskeletal injuries as well as for injuries that don’t require surgery.
Following are the ways that physical therapy helps you recover from musculoskeletal injuries.
Perhaps you have a musculoskeletal injury, such as sore tendons from overuse on the court or at work. Maybe you have nerve compression from carpal tunnel syndrome. Alternatively, you may have arthritis, which is slowing you down and creating stiff joints. Perhaps you’re coming off surgery.
Physical therapy is a gold standard of treatment in orthopedic practices. It helps you recover from a wide variety of musculoskeletal problems.
Using gentle movements at first, your therapist uses a variety of techniques to reduce pain and swelling, whether you’ve had surgery or not. Gentle massage, joint manipulation, ice and heat, and electrical stimulation all help to calm inflammation and reduce your pain and swelling, whether or not your injury requires surgery.
Your therapist uses gentle massage and joint manipulation as well as ultrasound to help break up scar tissue impeding your movement.
Scar tissue may have formed as your body has tried to repair tissue damage. It can develop after an operation or over time from an overuse injury. It’s very tough, fibrous tissue that can form on muscles, tendons, or ligaments and may prevent ease of movement.
Your tissue damage has likely impaired your mobility, whether it’s the ability to raise your arm to reach an item in a kitchen cabinet or your ability to walk normally. Physical therapy helps you regain lost range of motion so you can operate the body part normally again, or as closely to normal as possible.
Your therapist may use passive motion to move your joint at first. You may perform very limited movements at the beginning of your therapy. You then graduate to using resistance bands, balls, and other equipment to help you strengthen the muscles in the area of your injury so they can better support the bone or joint structure in the future.
If you need surgery, your doctor may recommend physical therapy before your operation to strengthen your muscles that support your joints. Going into surgery with some amount of strength helps hasten your recovery.
For all of your musculoskeletal needs, call Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine or book an appointment through our online portal today. We have offices in West Memphis, Arkansas, and Collierville, Tennessee, and we help you get moving again.
