You may require physical therapy to help you recover from an injury or medical condition that causes pain or limits your mobility. Your therapist will periodically assess your abilities to determine if your therapy is helping you achieve the goals you set during your first visit. 

Typical physical therapy in Bowie, MD goals may include:

• Pain relief
• Better range of motion
• Better balance
• Greater endurance
• More strength

Your therapists may apply one of the following methods to evaluate your progress during physical therapy.

Ask for Your Feedback

One of the most significant ways your therapist can determine if you are progressing in your therapy is to rate your pain level. Before you start your treatment plan, your therapist will ask you to describe your pain’s intensity by assigning it a number on a predetermined scale. As your therapy progresses, your therapist will periodically ask you to rate your current pain level and compare it to the baseline measurement you provided at your first session.

Take Objective Measurements

Your therapist can evaluate your strength, endurance, and range of motion objectively by using various tests. For example, at the start of therapy for a shoulder injury, you may not have been able to lift your arm higher than your rib cage. If you can raise your arm above your head after several weeks of treatment, your therapist can objectively determine that you are improving without asking you.

Therapists also use various kinds of equipment to measure strength, including isokinetic dynamometers that measure muscle strength in the hips, elbows, shoulders, or knees or hand held dynamometers that a patient can squeeze to indicate grip strength.

Observe You While You Are Performing Dynamic Activities

The ability to perform various activities without pain or compensating for a deficiency in strength, flexibility, or balance are additional signs that a physical therapist will look for when assessing your overall progress. Your therapist may ask you to demonstrate your ability to perform various dynamic activities, including walking, bending, or squatting, which demonstrate the degree to which you can support your body weight and maintain balance while shifting your center of gravity. 

The goals for your therapy are established before it begins. Your therapist will determine the best approach to your treatment based upon an initial assessment. Still, a routine evaluation of your progress is necessary to determine if an adjustment to the initial approach will be beneficial or if you have attained your therapy’s maximum benefit.

Contact our experienced physical therapist  at at Mid Atlantic Spinal Rehab & Chiropractic for your physical therapy in Bowie, MD, we will evaluate your condition and recommend a treatment plan to help you achieve your goals.

6 Reasons Chiropractic Care Can Help After a Car Accident

Physical Therapy

People who have been through a car accident, may not think of a chiropractor as one of the first medical professionals to see afterwards for injury treatment. However, a chiropractor can be a helpful person to consult with especially if you sustained injuries related to the musculoskeletal system and spine. A chiropractor can do an evaluation of your injuries and make recommendations for treatment.

The Pros and Cons of Conventional Medicine

Conventional medicine can truly save lives when it comes to emergency situations, serious infections, and other life-threatening conditions. The potential downside to conventional medicine when it comes to car accident injuries, is that unless a bone is broken or something more serious was sustained many doctors just prescribe pain and anti-inflammatory medication and send the patient on his or her way. Unfortunately, this may only be temporarily blanketing an injury without healing the root of the problem.

Where Chiropractors Can Step In

A car accident victim may be surprised to leave their doctor’s office with only a handful of prescriptions and not much else in terms of a treatment plan. Backaches, neck pain, stiffness, soreness, and restricted range of motion are all very common for those who were recently in a car crash. A chiropractor can identify why these symptoms are arising and instead of numbing them through medication, can perform spinal and other joint adjustments and physical therapy.

Through these sessions, many patients may experience these eight primary benefits:

1. Reduces inflammation: micro-tears within the muscles and ligaments of the body are common, and cannot be found through a standard x-ray. Spinal adjustments can bring the spine back into alignment, producing natural anti-inflammatory properties to assist with discomfort from these tears.
2. Reduces scar tissue: muscles can get scarred after an accident, causing stiffness and soreness. A chiropractor can target these scarred areas and help break down the build-up quicker than if it was left to heal on its own. Less scar tissue means a person is likely to feel better much faster.
3. Decreased need for medication: prescription pain medication can be very addictive. Taking a heavy painkiller in the short-term may turn into a continued addiction or dependency. Chiropractic adjustments can ensure that the true injury is being healed, and that pain isn’t simply being masked as an effect of the medications.
4. Long-term benefits: receiving chiropractic care promptly after a car accident can help prevent minor injuries from worsening into serious and chronic conditions down the road.
5. Restore range of motion: neck or back injuries can result in restricted mobility. It may be difficult to turn your neck or move in other ways when your muscles are inflamed. Mobilizing the spine through chiropractic adjustments can help restore proper range of motion and encourage the healing process.
6. Reduce pain: with spinal adjustments, a person can have pain reduced in not only the affected areas, but relief throughout their entire body too. Many people express feeling significant relief immediately following an adjustment, which could be due to the release of pain-reducing hormones.