The Importance of Routine and Monitored Physical Therapy

Physical therapy is a comprehensive form of care that includes stretching and therapeutic exercises to accelerate recovery and reestablish healthy musculoskeletal function. If you have arthritis, a sports injury, are recovering from a joint replacement, or have undergone another orthopaedic procedure, your doctor might advise that you go through physical therapy.

Our highly skilled orthopedic surgeons at the Orthopaedic Institute of Henderson provide a holistic approach to get you back on your feet quickly. We offer physical therapy to relieve pain, improve musculoskeletal function, and decrease your risk of reinjury.

Who needs physical therapy?

Physical therapy comprehensively treats conditions affecting many body parts, especially your musculoskeletal system. 

You might associate the meaning of physical therapy with massage, but this branch of medicine encompasses many functions that work together to help you regain optimal functioning of your body after an injury or surgery. 

Physical therapy might be right for you if you have:

• Musculoskeletal pain
• Decreased range of motion
• Stiffness
• Tissue damage
• Torn ligaments
• Tendinitis

You should also consider physical therapy to prevent or prepare before surgery. We assess your symptoms and background to decide which treatment is best for you. 

How physical therapy improves well-being

Wear-and-tear, injuries, illnesses, or operations often cause stiffening of joints, muscle breakdown, or shortening of tendons. Sometimes the person affected then develops incorrect movement patterns, which intensify the symptoms. 

Physical therapy starts at the functional level, training muscles, movement sequences, and physical performance. The movement improves muscle metabolism, activates growth in muscles and bones, and stimulates blood circulation. 

These movements help your body supply nutrients to muscles, bones, and cartilage. 

During routine and monitored physical therapy, you’re trained in body awareness, and our professionals help you regularly practice unfamiliar movements to strengthen unused muscles. This improves movement patterns.

Increasing mobility and physical performance have a positive effect on sporting challenges as well as in old age, to avoid falls with serious consequences. Regular exercise stimulates the formation of new blood vessels. Physical therapy also prevents excessive wear-and-tear of cartilage tissue.

When should you start physical therapy?

When moveable parts of your body are immobile, your tendons, tissue, muscles, and ligaments atrophy. Every day of inactivity means a loss of muscle strength. 

We work with you to begin physical therapy immediately following surgery. Just as your surgeon repairs or replaces a damaged structure, your physical therapist restores function using advanced techniques.

Swelling after surgery is completely normal. But excessive swelling can hurt the healing process, leading to tension and pain that restricts mobility. After the swelling subsides, physical therapy helps stimulate blood circulation. 

You’ll be able to stand up and walk a few steps just a few hours after surgery with the help of our specialized physical therapists. The longer you’re in bed after an operation, the greater the risk of complications. 

Physical therapy prevents and treats sports injuries as well. Early treatment considerably reduces recovery times so you can return to playing sports as soon as possible.

How long is physical therapy treatment?

Your joints require strength, stability, and mobility for overall health and well-being. Strength exercises and flexibility training challenge your musculoskeletal tissues without overworking them during physical therapy sessions. 

You gradually increase the difficulty of your movements as you progress toward your goal.

Many of our patients take part in physical therapy for a few weeks, while others attend therapy sessions for several months, even years. We customize treatment based on your needs, desired outcome, and progress after each therapy session.

In addition to in-office treatments, we may recommend at-home exercises and stretches. Once you fully recover, we leave you with detailed instructions regarding physical activity.

Call our Henderson, Nevada, office today if you’re injured, experiencing pain, or have a limited range of motion. Find out if physical therapy is right for you. You can also request an appointment online today.