About Physical Therapy for Stroke Patients
Heart disease could very well be considered America's public health enemy number one, with a fatality rate outranking that of cancer. Those who do survive any of the various maladies that constitute as heart disease often find themselves dealing with some degree of debilitation. This can be especially true for victims of stroke, who often suffer sufficient damage that decreases mobility, resulting in a high degree of loss in independence and daily living. Physical therapy may be the only way many patients can regain lost basic living skills.
Stroke Vesus Myocardial Infarction
Heart disease is actually an umbrella term for the many types of diseases that negatively affect the cardiovascular system. The two most common occurrences of the disease are and stroke. Myocardial infarctions, or heart attacks, occur as a result of a blockage of blood supply to or from the heart and the rest of the body. A stroke is very similar, the difference being the blockage inhibits blood flow to all or certain parts of the brain.
The Role of Physical Therapy in Stroke Rehab
The extent and nature of the damage is entirely dependent on what part of the brain was affected. Paralysis and motor skill inhibition, hyposensitivity, poor communication skills, cognitive deficiencies and emotional disorders are all common among stroke patients. Upon physician's clearance, the goal of the physical therapy department (sometimes a joint effort with occupational therapy) is to utilize several of the methods at their disposal in order to circumvent the patient's disability and allow them some degree of living independence.
The Goal of Physical Therapy
Physical therapy for the stroke patient involves working towards muscle coordination and re-introducing basic motor skills, two areas in which many stroke patients are deficient. The idea is to teach the victim new ways of performing basic daily activities, such as teeth brushing, grooming, dressing and self-feeding. Physical therapy stresses getting the patient to actively use the negatively affected arms and legs to achieve these tasks. This goal can be achieved in a variety of ways, such as disallowing use of the working appendages to "force" the patient to engage the affected limb(s).
Common Methods
Patient exercise routines can be performed using any one or combination of physical therapy-related equipment. For those with gait (walking style) issues, the gait belt, a harness guided by the therapist, is often used to maintain delicate stability. Often, exercises can be performed in the buoyancy of a water pool, known as hydrotherapy, to allow a formerly bedridden patient to acclimate to his own body weight. Resistance exercise versus gravity is often introduced to allow the patient to regain muscle strength and endurance.
Outlook
Extensive studies have shown that physical therapy is beneficial to stroke patients and highly successful at allowing them to achieve some level of functional independence. According to the American Heart Association, less than 14 percent of rehabilitated stroke victims return to their pre-incident level of function, while it is estimated that nearly 50 percent need additional assistance, despite medically successful physical therapy sessions. Currently, physical therapy has gravitated to more leisurely-based activities to increase a patient's enjoyment, thus giving them more incentive to complete their therapy sessions.
Tags: physical therapy, stroke patients, heart attacks, Physical therapy, Physical Therapy, Physical Therapy Stroke, some degree
