Manual therapy is a form of physical treatment in which the therapists use their bare hands to pressure muscle tissues and bone joints to relieve pain, swelling, and inflammation. Manual therapy can also promote mobility, flexibility, alignment of joints, and muscular performance.
Generally, a qualified physiotherapist administers manual therapy. The therapist may evaluate the suffering, pain, or inflammation and emanate the treatment plan accordingly. The treatment strategies may include massages, exercises, tractions, and manipulation based on the difficulty factors.
Manual Therapy In Sports Rehabilitation
Injuries and fractures are common in sporting activities. All athletes and sports professionals are prone to injuries depending on the outrageous depreciation associated with the competitive demands of the industry.
Injuries can transpire in any sporting activity, and fitness restoration is a consequential part of an athlete’s and sports professional’s life. A valid treatment plan with therapies and pieces of training to maintain stability and flexibility will help the athletes recover quickly after an injury and empower them to resume their sports.
If you encounter an injury through playing sports and get sheltered in a sports rehabilitation center, your treatment program will most likely include physical therapy. The initial effort towards the restoration will be a series of tests to determine the injury and intensity of the damages, and the treatment strategy will be individualized accordingly.
Manual therapy, a fundamental part of physical therapy, will be part of a treatment technique in sports rehabilitation. Manual therapy may include treatment plans for the shoulders, spinal cords, lower back, knees, jaws, hips, ankles, joints, muscle strains, muscle spasms, sprains, swellings, etc.
A physiotherapist who executes manual or hand therapy can benefit patients with medical conditions like sports injuries, recovery from surgery, and people who suffer flexibility and mobility issues due to pain and weakness.
Therapy strategies for each patient are customized based on their necessities. With a constructive timeline, regular therapy can restore a patient’s fitness and spectrum of activity and eventually improve their contentment.
Benefits Of Manual Therapy
Considering sports rehabilitation, manual therapy is a safe, gentle, painless, and effective treatment method for pain relief, compaction of swellings and restraints, mobilization of joints, and enhancement of mobility and flexibility of the athletes.
A physical therapist may follow different techniques and approaches to treat their patients. The strategies are uniquely beneficial, which helps them improve their fitness and attain healthiness.
Some characteristic benefits of manual and physical therapy include;
- Relaxes tense muscles
- Relieves internal and external pains
- Reduces soft-tissue inflammations
- Improves flexibility
- Improves blood flow
- Improves joint afflictions and movement
- Improves quality and quantity of motion and effective balance
Excluding these characteristical benefits, manual and physical therapy supports neurological conditions and problems related to spinal cord depletions. Adopting physical therapy and manual therapy evades the use of unpleasant drugs, anesthetics, and medications. These medications can cause unwanted side effects and can become addictive, which will affect the overall health and well-being of the athletes and sports professionals.
Post-Treatment Guidelines
The physiotherapists may direct post-treatment guidelines after the completion of the treatment course. It is essential to strictly follow the post-treatment procedures appropriately as it helps to recuperate adequately and also to restrict the reoccurrence of the condition in the patient. Here are some standard post-treatment guidelines for patients after the manual therapy.
- Stretching and extending exercises
- A nutritious food diets
- Healthy sleep and restfulness
- Short distance strides
- Frequent massages
Read More:- What Are Elbow Range Of Motion Exercises? Importance Of Elbow Range Of Motion
The recovery of the patient is dependent on the condition for which the patient is undergoing treatment. The recovery time and post-treatment procedures are strictly stringent on the techniques and strategy used by the physiotherapist. In some cases, the manual therapy treatment results in permanent resolution. However, if the patient does not make the appropriate efforts prescribed by the doctors after therapy, the patient may undergo the same condition soon.
Conclusion
A compelling manual therapy can help lower the need for surgery, which is suitable for athletes who want to return to sports activities as soon as possible. Physical therapy exercises enhance healing by increasing cellular metabolism and lymphatic drainage. It helps in pain relief for patients with sports injuries.
The therapists may perform manipulations and soft tissue massages to ease the pain and sometimes tools and techniques such as ultrasound and electrical stimulations to relieve pain and inflammations. It boosts blood circulation and relaxes the tight muscle tissue, which helps our body to relax.
