Rehabilitation Therapy

The goal of rehabilitation therapy is to help you resume as active and healthy a lifestyle as possible. Rehabilitation therapies fall into two major categories:

Physical therapy, which may include exercise, tissue manipulation, and other treatments focused on maximizing function in specific body parts

Occupational therapy, which is focused on techniques that prepare you to work or your normal daily routine.

Rehabilitation therapy is a set of treatments that is given to those who lose their skills of performing daily chores, due to accidents or due to mental stress. A majority of drug abusers also need to undergo rehabilitation care for them to undo the damage done by drugs. Rehabilitation is a medical procedure, but unlike having a tablet and getting cured, this procedure takes in a lot, both from the doctor as well as the patient. This is a long duration procedure, where, by means of intervention, exercises, and speech therapy, a patients mind is slowly brought back to the normal state of mind. This needs too much patience and care. For example, rehabilitation therapy can be given to those who have sensory losses like the eyes, and also to people like amputees who are grafter with new skin. In the former case, the patient is taught how to survive without the sense of seeing, and in the latter, the patient is made at ease with the newly grafted limb. This helps to reduce the suffering. Since this therapy can shape an individuals life, only trained and expert individuals are allowed to perform this,
Physical therapy focuses on strengthening muscles and relieving pain. Physical rehabilitation treatments often include massage and exercise. If a patient is too weak to exercise on his or her own, a qualified physical therapist may gently move the patient's arms or legs to help build strength. Patients with more physical strength may lift weights to build muscle, while others hurt in an accident may need a cane or other device to help them walk. Patients in wheelchairs are often taught to do exercises made to do in a wheelchair in physical therapy. Speech rehabilitation therapy helps stroke patients and others with speaking difficulties relearn to communicate. Speech rehab also helps those who have experienced damage to their language skills such as some brain injury patients. Patients who experienced memory loss may have difficulty with the reasoning skills needed for forming coherent language. A qualified speech therapist may be able to help patients with memory loss and other conditions improve their ability to speak clearly with the aid of reading comprehension materials and other learning devices. Drug rehabilitation therapy may include several components, such as counseling and medication. Inpatient drug rehab programs may be short term or long term. Drug treatment centers typically offer residential drug rehabilitation therapy for at least a month and up to a year. Outpatient drug rehab usually follows a residential stay in a treatment center and continues to try and help people cope with life and avoid substance abuse. A

weekly counseling session that may be individual or in a group setting is often a large part of outpatient drug rehabilitation. One person may require different kinds of rehabilitation therapy. For example, a person with a substance abuse problem who is involved in a motorcycle accident could need both drug rehabilitation and physical therapy. A stroke patient who is paralyzed in his or her face and other areas of the body may need physical as well as speech therapy. Rehab therapists may work together on a patient's case in order to coordinate an effective therapy program

Physical Therapy Rehabilitation on wiseGEEK:

Physical therapy may also be administered in homes, hospitals, outpatient treatment centers, extended care facilities, schools, and fitness centers. Physical therapy rehabilitation treatment plans are customized to the individual. Physical therapy is prescribed by a physician and may take place at a hospital, physical therapy rehabilitation center, or private doctor's office. On the first visit, the patient will receive an assessment and a customized plan from a physical therapist or a physical therapy assistant

Rehabilitation is a generic term for the comprehensive treatment of injury and/or medical conditions. It has active and passive elements. It focuses upon the whole person not just the injury and aims to restore the greatest possible degree of function in the shortest possible time. The factors implicated in the cause of injury should be addressed to prevent injury recurrence. Three concepts help with the understanding of the rehabilitation process these are impairment, disability and handicap. Injury causes an individual an impairment. This is the injury at the tissue level e.g. ruptured medial collateral ligament of the knee. Impairment usually causes a disability This is a loss of function e.g. walking with a limp and unable to run. This in turn may cause a handicap this is an individuals inability to perform tasks or engage in activities. e.g. the professional footballer is unable to compete for the rest of the season due to the knee injury which causes loss of playing time, reducing his income and prematurely ending his career. This causes some reactive depression. From this example the need for the physician to consider the medical, physical, psychosocial, vocational and leisure requirements of the injured athlete is apparent. The areas covered in this article and further articles are

the principles of rehabilitation treatment modalities specific examples complications of inadequate or incorrect

rehabilitation prevention

Principles of rehabilitation The process of athletic injury rehabilitation aims to minimize tissue damage and allow a safe return to activity. It is based on the science of tissue healing, knowledge of joint biomechanics, physiology of muscular strength and endurance, and the neurophysiological basis of skill retraining. Successful programs are based on an understanding of these constraints, which, when properly applied, permit the progressive activity of joints and muscles. Muscular strength, endurance and power are redeveloped while flexibility and cardiovascular fitness are maintained. Precipitating factors are identified and addressed to minimize reinjury. To understand, grade and treat injuries the physician needs to identify the tissues involved. This chapter focuses on muscle-skeletal injury and rehabilitation of bone, ligament, muscle, tendon, connective tissue and neuromuscular structures combining to produce coordinated, purposeful movement. The treatment of other injuries is covered in relevant chapters. The healing process involves inflammatory, repair and remodeling phases. There are detrimental effects of immobilization, muscle wasting and weakness and subsequent joint damage. This leads to further immobilization and reflex inhibition a vicious circle. Early mobilization is usually indicated. Lack of motion of joints results in shortening of capsular and other connective tissue structures supporting the joint, loss of lubrication and alternating compression between joint surfaces deprives articular cartilage of nutrition. There are detrimental systemic effects of immobilization, these begin within hours and become clinically important within days. They include cardiovascular deconditioning, nervous system depression, skin sores gastrointestinal complaints (constipation), thromboembolic genesis, bone resorbtion and respiratory impairment.(3) Thus the expression MOVE IT OR LOSE IT An understanding of the sport or activity is required, many injuries are sport specific and communication is enhanced if the physician has some basic knowledge of the sports requirements. Profiling is a concept that matches an individuals physiognomy with the type of athletic activity and in team sports their role.