Acupuncture Perth
Acupuncture is otherwise known in physiotherapy circles as dry needling.
Dry needling is a relatively new treatment modality used by Physiotherapist to treat musculoskeletal conditions. Evidence suggests that dry needling is a useful adjunct to compliment other conventional therapies.
The dry needling method is a minimally invasive procedure where a needle is inserted into myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) which are located within the skeletal muscles. When pressure is applied to these points it can elicit two responses; referred pain and a local twitch response. A clinical review stated in Oct 2010 that are large number of participants who presented to pain centres, dentists and neurologist had active MTrPs.
Dry Needling May assist with;
- Pain relief
- Increase functional improvement
- Restore tissue mobility
- Sinus pain relief Tension headaches
- Increases blood supply
The team at PhysioPro specialize in dry needling so call today to relieve your pain and to improve your movement.
Core Strengthening
Having a strong ‘core’ muscle group (your deep abdominals and pelvic floor) provides better support to your lower back reducing the risk, frequency and severity of incidences of low back pain.
Strengthening your core can also be vitally important for maintaining balance and mobility as you get older, recovering from abdominal or gynaecological surgery, following a pregnancy, and for ensuring good bladder and bowel control.
We can guide you through the correct and safe techniques for strengthening your core, and create an individualized home exercise program.Please call your local PhysioPro today for advice.
Deep Tissue Massage
There are substantial amounts of evidence shown in systematic reviews stating the effectiveness of massage therapy on musculoskeletal conditions. Massage therapy in combination with education and exercise prescription can assist with reducing muscular pain and can promote recovery and healing.
Massage can be used to complement the treatment of:
- Tension headaches
- Swelling ie postoperative and acute injuries
- Reduce stress and anxiety
- Promotes relaxation
- Pain relief
- Reduces delayed onset muscle soreness post exercise
Increase physical function and increases range of motion
Types of Massage:
- Transverse frictions
- Scar treatment therapy
- Increase tendon mobility
- Myofascial Release
Benefits of deep tissue:
- Improving muscular length
- Increasing range of motion
- Manual lymphatic drainage
- Reducing pain and swelling
- Sinus pain
- Deep tissue massage
- Decreasing muscular tension
- Reduce myofascial pain and dysfunction
The PhysioPro team specialise in deep tissue massage so call the clinic for some today!
Ergonomic Education
Ergonomics, whether it be how we sit, stand, sleep or work, is based on reducing the stress we place through our body’s joints, muscles and particularly our spine. Any ergonomic advice given should be backed up with appropriate strengthening and stretching exercises – especially if prior injury exists. Not all of the following advice may be suitable for your workplace or for the type of work you do, but try to implement those things you can.
- Height of screen should be at eye level
- Screen should be approximately arms’ length away from you
- Hips and knees should be level, with thighs parallel to the ground
- Your back and thighs should create an angle between 90°-110°
- Feet should be resting on the floor or a footrest
- Avoid slouching and maintain a neutral lumbar spine position
- If you are standing, you should wear supportive shoes and avoid locking your knees. Keep your feet shoulder width apart to support your weight
- Forearms should be parallel to the surface you are working on
- Hands and wrists should be straight
- Shoulders should be relaxed, with elbows by your side at approximately 90°
- Give your eyes a break from the screen by looking away every 20 minutes
- Ensure the screens’ brightness and glare is suitable
- Adjust the height of your keyboard/desk surface so that when you sit your forearms are just a little below 900. This takes pressure off the elbow and the muscles of the forearm whilst maximizing the flow of blood to the forearm and hand. The hands should rest comfortably on the base of the keyboard or on a ‘keyboard wrist block’. Ergonomic or ‘split’ keyboards may take a little getting use to but do help prevent overuse type injuries of the hand and wrist.
- Many office chairs now come with the ability to forward tilt the base (the sitting surface). Adjust your chair so this can be done – ie your knees should be slightly lower than your hips. This causes you to push back into the chair which in-turn supports your posture. If you do not have a chair which tilts forward, a wedge of foam can be used (thin end toward the front as shown below) Specially designed inflatable wedges can be purchased for around $50. As an adjunct, when the base of the chair is tilted forward, the back of the chair will often also move forward of the vertical (will lean forward – see picture opposite). This improves support to the lower back and although this adjustment may take some time to get use to, it works wonders for improving your posture.
- Have the monitor as close to eye height as possible. Most neck and upper limb problems arise from a ‘chin poked’ posture. This occurs either when people protrude their chin to look down at the computer monitor or when they are straining to see the screen. (This seems to be worsened with bifocal glasses which encourage you to look through the bottom of your lenses and further protrude your chin) Make sure you regularly have your eyes checked. It may also pay to have a special pair of non-bifocal glasses that you use solely for work at your desk.
- Have your feet resting on a surface – either a small stool or the floor – so that they are not dangling. The feet should be able to rest flat on this surface – not just on your toes – and this should allow for few centimeters of clearance between the end of the chair and the bottom of your thighs. In other words, where the seat finishes should not be in contact with your thighs (this is not demonstrated in the picture above)
- Position office equipment that you use regularly as close to the computer as possible and balance your workload to your left and right – ie if you are typing regularly, periodically change the side of the monitor on which you have you ‘copy sheets’ mounted. Also using the mouse with your non-dominant hand also seems to prevent RSI type injuries. The mouse of a computer can readily be swapped from left to right handed by clicking on the “Mouse” icon in the “Control Panel” section of your ‘Start’ menu.
- Take regular breaks. Every 15 or 20 minutes take your neck and upper back through a series of stretches. Stretch your neck to the left and right, forward and backward. Do not roll your neck or bounce into a stretch. If possible try to get up and walk around. Set the alarm on your clock or you can even use the calendar function in Microsoft Outlook to alarm at periodic intervals whilst you are at your computer. Leaning back over your chair may often elicit a few ‘cracks’ in your middle back but as long as it is not painful to do, it can be a very beneficial exercise. Likewise, tucking your chin in (as if giving yourself a double chin) is a terrific exercise to do at regular intervals whilst you are seated a computer – perform this 20 or 30 times whenever you break from work. Even deep breathing (2 or 3 deep breaths) during these break times can help relieve a lot of tension in your neck and back. Some other helpful exercises are mentioned below.
Hands-On Treatment
Using hands on methods is an important part of both physiotherapy assessment as well as treatment. Your physio will use palpation to help make an accurate diagnosis. And our intervention will always involve hands on treatment techniques such as massage and mobilizations.
We love our patients to give us feedback on our hands on techniques; if you have any questions or concerns, or if our hands on techniques are too firm (or too soft!), always let your physio know!
Manipulative Therapy
Your PhysioPro therapist is a master in manipulative therapy. This could be of the soft tissues like muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia or it could be of the hard tissues like the joints.
They will use deep tissue massage, trigger point therapy or soft tissue releases to get the result that you need.
Your PhysioPro therapist will assess to see whether gentle joint mobilisations or a quicker joint manipulation would be best to release the affected joint.
Call your PhysioPro today to receive some expert manipulation therapy.
Orthopaedic Management
After any orthopaedic procedure, including management of broken/fractured bones, joint replacements or arthroscopies, or spinal surgeries, you may require rehabilitation.
We can use hands on techniques to help manage swelling, pain and stiffness.
And liaising with your surgeon, can guide you through an individualised safe exercise rehabilitation program, ensuring the best possible outcome for your recovery.
Plantar Fasciitis Taping
Taping is a fantastic way to support the arch of your foot and to offload the pain from plantar fasciitis. It mimics a supportive shoe or orthotic to effectively gives your foot a window of opportunity to rest and heal itself.
The team at PhysioPro can help improve the symptoms of plantar fasciitis with taping techniques today. Just call your local clinic for an appointment or just drop in and we can tape you in between patients.
Posture Assessment
As a part of each consultation you will receive a posture assessment which can get to the bottom of the potential causes of pain.
In common examples people with jobs which involves prolonged sitting can have pain in the neck and upper back due to a chin which pokes forward. Patients could also be suffering pain in their lower back from tight hip flexors that can give them an anterior pelvic tilt.
Once diagnosed, your PhysioPro will prescribe strengthening exercises to prevent the onset of pain once you have had your manual therapy work.
Call your PhysioPro today to get your posture assessment today.
Sciatica Treatments
Sciatica is pain arising from the sciatic nerve, which originates at the lower spine and travels through the buttock and down back of your leg. Sciatic pain is usually produced as a result of pressure on the nerve.
Symptoms can include a pulling sensation, ache or pain, pins and needles, numbness, or the feeling your leg has “gone to sleep”.
Pressure on the sciatic nerve can be a result of bulging discs in the lower back, joint degeneration where the nerve exits the spine, or tightness in the soft tissues surrounding the nerve. The nerve may also be irritated by inflammation in the area.
Physiotherapy can help treat the cause of your sciatic pain whether it be one or several of the factors mentioned above.
Sports Massage
There are substantial amounts of evidence shown in systematic reviews stating the effectiveness of massage therapy on musculoskeletal conditions. Massage therapy in combination with education and exercise prescription can assist with reducing muscular pain and can promote recovery and healing.
Massage can be used to complement the treatment of:
- Tension headaches
- Swelling ie postoperative, acute injuries
- Reduce stress and anxiety
- Promotes relaxation
- Pain relief
- Reduces delayed onset muscle soreness post exercise
- Increase physical function and increases range of motion
Types of Massage:
- Transverse frictions
- Scar treatment therapy
- Increase tendon mobility
- Myofascial Release
- Improving muscular length
- Increasing range of motion
- Manual lymphatic drainage
- Reducing pain and swelling
- Sinus pain
- Deep tissue massage Perth
- Decreasing muscular tension
- Trigger Point therapy
- Reduce myofascial pain and dysfunction
Taping & Strapping
Physiotherapists are known for their taping and strapping skills for both sporting and general life conditions. Tape can be used for a variety of reasons, including:
- Joint Stabilisation/Immobilisation – eg. To restrict ankle movement initially following injury
- Promote Postural Awareness – eg. Spinal posture taping for sitting and standing positions
- Assist Muscle Activation – eg. Kinesiology taping for the gastrocnemius (calf) muscle
Our therapists pride themselves on their taping and strapping ability and extensive knowledge of application techniques to reduce injury rehabilitation times, reduce pain and maximise daily function.
If you have allergies or sensitive skin, please advise your physiotherapist prior to having any tape applied. Different tape products, including hypo-allergenic options can be explored to maintain taping benefits while reducing the risk of skin irritation.
( Please note, if tape does cause skin irritation, including redness, itchiness, heat or altered sensation, it is best to remove tape immediately. If you are unsure, contact your physiotherapist.)
Trigger Point Therapy
Trigger point therapy is where your PhysioPro uses a prolonged hold in a specific area of muscle to facilitate a fascial release which will improve the function and the length of the affected muscle. This will be used in conjunction with other joint therapy and soft tissue therapy to achieve an outstanding result for all our clients.
Physio Ultrasound
Therapeutic ultrasound is a treatment modality that has been widely used by physiotherapists since the 1940s. Gel is applied to the ultrasound transducer, which is then put in direct contact with your skin over the injured area.
The main benefits of ultrasound include:
- increasing blood flow
- reducing swelling
- speeding up the healing process
- decreasing pain
Some conditions which might benefit from Therapeutic Ultrasound include ligament sprains, joint
Inflammation, bursitis and tendonitis. Call the PhysioPro clinic to get some ultrasound treatment today.
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