What is Tennis Elbow?

Tennis elbow is characterized by pain and tenderness on the outside of the elbow. It is an overuse condition caused by repetitive motion of the wrist and forearm. Common activities that can lead to tennis elbow include gardening, computer work, racket sports, heavy lifting, and repetitive manual labor. 

Signs and symptoms of tennis elbow include pain or burning on the outer part of your elbow and weak grip strength. These symptoms can be made worse with forearm activity. Usually your dominant are is most often affected.

Physiotherapy can help by:

• Providing you with specific exercises to help strengthen and stretch the muscles of the forearm

• Perform therapeutic modalities to decrease inflammation and pain

• Perform manual therapy techniques to improve muscle healing

• Provide you with education regarding activities and positions to avoid in order to allow for proper healing and rest

What is Neurological Rehabilitation?

Neurological disorders affect the body's nervous system including the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. When communication of signals between your brain and other body parts is disrupted symptoms like weak muscles, uncoordinated movements and sensation changes occur.

Common neurological conditions include stroke, parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injuries, and peripheral nerve injuries. Neurological disorders can occur due to aging, trauma, or a medical event such as a stroke. Some neurological conditions are also hereditary.

Physiotherapy can help individuals with neurological disorders by kick-starting the message pathways your brain is struggling to use and can creating new pathways with repetitive movements. Neurological rehabilitation involves a variety of techniques to regain stability and core control, improve movement patterns, and retrain gait and balance.

PHYSIOTHERAPISTS TRAINED IN Neurological REHABILITATION WILL:

• Discuss your medical history and the nature of your symptoms

• Evaluating your environment and providing recommendations for adaptive equipment and devices

• Performing regular follow up treatments consisting of repetitive exercises and tasks to improve motor function and reinforce new patterns

• Designing an individualized exercise program to increase your strength, endurance and balance

• Performing balance and gait training to reduce your risk for falls and improve balance reactions

IF YOU OR YOUR LOVED ONE has a neurological condition -

CALL US TODAY TO SPEAK WITH A PHYSIOTHERAPIST ABOUT YOUR SITUATION! 

Urinary Incontinence: how physiotherapy can help

Urinary incontinence is accidental urine leakage that can occur when laughing, lifting, sneezing, or coughing. According to the World Health Organization it affects one in three women worldwide. The Canadian Continence Foundation also stats one in six women over 30 have urinary incontinence. Despite the major impacts it has on one’s lifestyle, it is not often discussed. People with incontinence are often embarrassed to speak about it with their health care providers, friends or family.

The main types of urinary incontinence include:

• Stress incontinence

  • Leakage during physical exertion (sports) or during coughing or sneezing

• Urge incontinence

  • Leakage when you need to go but don’t quite make it in time

• Mixed

  • Combination of stress and urge incontinence

Urinary incontinence affects men, women, and children. It commonly affects more women than men due to pregnancy, childbirth, menopause, hysterectomy, and the structure of the female urinary tract. Pelvic floor muscles can become stretched with childbirth or lose their strength and tone with age and menopause. Incontinence can also result from injury, infection, disease, or medical condition. 

How physiotherapists help

Physiotherapists with specialized training are highly skilled at assessing and treating people with urinary incontinence.

Getting an accurate diagnosis is key for effective treatment. Following an assessment your physiotherapist will develop an individualized treatment plan. Targeted strengthening and stretching techniques, bladder and pelvic floor training and lifestyle or habit changes can often successfully treat incontinence. Sometimes special equipment (biofeedback, electric muscle stimulation) is used. Specific exercises are an effective way to increase strength, endurance and coordination of the pelvic floor muscles and stop the urinary incontinence.

Physiotherapists trained in urinary incontinence treatment will:

• Take a careful history to identify your symptoms

• Screen out conditions requiring medical follow-up

• Discuss the impact on your lifestyle

• Perform a physical examination of your back, pelvis, sacrum, pelvic floor muscles, and nerve function

If you are someone you love has urinary incontinence. Find a physiotherapist who specializes in pelvic floor rehabilitation today on the OPPQ website.