Manual therapy is a practice that has become very popular in the last few years. Manual therapy is mainly an approach used by physical therapists to find out the causes of the injury and then treat the joint structures as well as the soft tissues, with the final purpose being of modulating pain, eliminating any tissue inflammations and so on.
Moreover, manual therapy is also useful if you want to facilitate movement, improve various body functions and induce a sense of relaxation, something that is needed in a stressful society such as ours.
Manual therapy is basically a way of performing therapeutic techniques without the use of technical equipment. Instead, people known as manual therapists use their own hands to treat injuries or joint problems for example.
A manual therapist is a person that has an advanced training as a physical therapist and which, of course, has obtained a certificate in this field of work. This means that a physical therapist has a lot of knowledge regarding clinical terms and conditions.
There are different types of manual therapy that can be performed. One of the most popular ones is mobilization and manipulation. This one includes different types of high velocity and small amplitude therapeutic movement, all of them combined with the main purpose of helping you move better and easier.
Then there’s the muscle energy technique that specifically uses the contraction of the patient muscles against a counterforce from a certain position towards a certain direction. This particular technique is suitable for engaging the joint restriction barrier without stressing it.
Moreover, there’s the strain-counterstrain technique which places the body in a position of comfort with the sole purpose relieving pain by reduction.
Another technique that is very popular is the soft tissue mobilization that breaks the restrictions between muscles and decreases hypertonus. The hypertonus is usually associated with muscle tightness, which can cause different problems.
The high velocity, low amplitude thrusting techniques is another one suitable for joints, this time it makes it easy to restore the gliding motion of your joints so you can close and open them efficiently. It’s a little more aggressive than the other one, but if it’s used properly it brings a decrease in the muscle tone as well as an increase in mobility.
However, manual physiotherapy can’t solve all problems, that’s why patients are always encouraged to use various types of treatments. Combining these with exercises for back pain and some aerobic can definitely improve the condition, as this is a great exercise for any patient.
In the end, the main goal of the manual physiotherapy is to help the body recover from stress or any other issue. By combining it with other activities you will have the opportunity of living a much better and healthier life.