The back comprises the spine and spinal nerves, as well as several different muscle groups. Back pain includes lower back pain, middle back pain, upper back pain or low back pain with sciatica. “Back pain” is a general term as it can be caused by different conditions such as an injury at the gym, poor posture, a car accident, etc. The treatment plan that our physiotherapists set up for will depend on how the back pain has developed, in addition to its exact location and your past medical history. 

Back pain can be described as acute or chronic. Acute refers to pain that lasts for a short period of time and is severe, whereas chronic is pain that lasts for a longer duration of time (generally three months or longer) that is either be persistently severe or dull pain. The pain you may experience is typically either rooted in your back muscles or the bones in your spine. 

General back pain usually develops as the result of an injury, but it can occur suddenly or gradually over time. For example, repetitive straining motions, such as bending down multiple times to pick up heavy objects can result in general back pain, as can more serious, sudden trauma, such as a car accident. Underlying conditions, such as herniated discs, can also cause severe back pain and can lead to sciatica or nerve pain. Degenerative disc disease is also a common condition resulting in back pain, which can be caused by poor posture or obesity causing dull, aching pains in the lower back that are chronic and persistent. 

Irrespective of the origin of the back pain, rest assured, our physiotherapists shall be able to identify and effectively help provide the best possible treatment to assist in your recovery. 

The knee is the largest joint in the body, and one of the most easily injured. It is made up of a complex system of bones, tendons, and ligaments. They are hinge joints that allow for the forward-and-backward motions.Due to overexertion or repetitive motions the knee can be easily injured and cause pain, it can also be caused by an underlying ailment.

Some of the most common causes of knee pain are sprains, strains, fractures, tears, dislocation, tendinitis, bursitis, and arthritis.

On reporting such pain, our physiotherapists shall examine your knee for signs of misalignment or structural damage in addition to examining your stance, posture, gait, and range of motions. If required, additional tests (such as x-rays) may be conducted. This will help determine the cause of your knee pain, effectively helping us treat it accordingly. After our evaluation is complete, our Physical Therapist will prescribe a plan tailor made for you, aimed at relieving unnatural stresses and strains, and normalising your joint function. 

There are some remedial measures that you can take on the recommendation of our physiotherapists to help relieve your knee pain, such as wearing properly fitted shoes, using hot and cold remedies, stretching, and taking breaks from physical activity when you notice painful flare-ups in the knee. However, physical therapy is the best way to find consistent, long-lasting relief for your knee pain. Through manual therapy, strength training, flexibility training, balance training, and pain-specific exercises, we can assure you that our experts can help get your knees moving comfortably once again. 

The neck or cervical spine is a coordinated network of nerves, bones, joints and muscles. It is stable yet flexible and supports the weight of your head, so it can be vulnerable to injuries and conditions that cause pain and restrict motion. 

Neck muscles can be strained from poor posture — whether it’s leaning over your computer or hunching over your workbench. Osteoarthritis caused by worn joints also is a common cause of neck pain, nerve compression, injuries or in some rare cases, certain diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, meningitis or cancer, can cause neck pain. Additionally, irritation along nerve pathways in the neck can cause pain in the shoulder, head, arm, and/or hand also, in the same manner irritation in certain parts of the spinal cord can cause pain in the legs and other areas below the neck. 

Neck pain may be acute, pain that lasts less than four weeks; Subacute, pain that lasts four to twelve weeks or may be chronic, pain that lasts for three months or longer. Our physiotherapists shall help diagnose the pain and accordingly provide the treatment that is right for you. 

It can be noted that acute neck pain can be avoided by maintaining good posture and also performing simple exercises at home (or in front of your computer at work) to gently stretch and relax your neck muscles.

The shoulder is the most movable joint in the human body. A group of four muscles and their tendons, called the rotator cuff, give the shoulder its wide range of motion. Physical discomfort of the shoulder, including the joint itself or the muscles, tendons and ligaments that support the joint may constitute shoulder pain.

Swelling, damage, or bone changes around the rotator cuff can cause shoulder pain. You may have pain when lifting the arm above your head or moving it forward or behind your back. Shoulder pain may also be caused by arthritis in the shoulder joint, bone spurs , Bursitis, which is inflammation of a fluid-filled sac (bursa) that normally protects the joint and helps it move smoothly,a broken shoulder bone, dislocation of the shoulder, shoulder separation, frozen shoulder, which occurs when the muscles, tendons, and ligaments inside the shoulder become stiff, making movement difficult and painful, overuse or injury of nearby tendons, such as the bicep muscles of the arms tears of the rotator cuff tendons, or poor shoulder posture and mechanics. Another point to be noted is that sharp and acute shoulder pain may be a symptom of a heart attack that requires immediate medical attention. 

As for the causes of shoulder pain, our physiotherapists have been trained to correctly diagnose and treat the area in an appropriate manner ensuring that your conventional shoulder movements are fully restored. 

Manual therapy is a structured approach to delivering hands-on physical therapy within a biopsychosocial framework, it mostly includes kneading and manipulation of muscles, joint mobilisation manipulation. 

Manual therapy helps modulate pain, increase joint mobility to stiff joints and bring about a full range of motions, improve tissue repair, tissue stability and extensibility, reduce soft-tissue inflammation and muscle tension, induce relaxation, facilitate movement and exercise therapy. 

Manual therapy involves the use of various skills such as joint mobilisations, passive movement of varied intensities and amplitudes applied to a joint; Joint manipulations, passive movement with high velocity and low amplitude applied to a joint; Manual therapy of the soft tissues, it is the application of manual pressure to the skin, muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia. The most common soft tissue manual techniques are; Deep tissue massage, sports, therapeutic massage, and manual lymphatic drainage.

The three paradigms for manual therapy are: 

• Physiological: to induce a positive placebo response 
• Biomechanical and Physical: facilitates repair and tissue modelling 
• Psychological: pain relief via gating mechanism, muscle inhibition, reduction of nociceptive activity, reduced intra articular or periarticular pressure. 

Our extensively trained Manual Therapists ensure the only the best treatment for you using world -class Manual Therapy.

Three bones meet to form your knee joint: your thighbone (femur), shinbone (tibia), and kneecap (patella). Your kneecap sits in front of the joint to provide some protection. Bones are connected to other bones by ligaments. There are four primary ligaments in your knee. They act like strong ropes to hold the bones together and keep your knee stable. These ligaments form your ACL or Anterior Cruciate Ligament. 

An ACL injury is painful and debilitating. Many people hear a pop or feel a “popping” sensation in the knee when an ACL injury occurs. Those suffering from this type of injury typically experience severe pain, swelling, limited range of motion, and instability when trying to bear weight. Seek immediate care if any injury to your knee causes signs or symptoms of an ACL injury. It is important to get a prompt and accurate diagnosis to determine the severity of the injury and get proper treatment.  

The injury is most likely caused by making sudden movements often while playing sports, movements such as changing direction rapidly, stopping suddenly, slowing down while running, landing from a jump incorrectly or direct contact or collision, such as a football tackle. Research shows that 26% of non-contact ACL injuries could be prevented by specific exercise programs. At Federation of Indian Manual Therapists, we are dedicated not only to helping you recover from your ACL injury, but also guide you to prevent similar such injuries from occurring. 

After diagnostic tests and physical examinations are complete, our physiotherapists will design a specialised treatment plan based on your needs. Your treatment plan may include manual therapy, ice and heat therapies, ultrasound, or targeted exercises, all aimed at providing relief and functional rehabilitation and recovery from your ACL injury.

Not every athlete has to be a “pro”. The fact of the matter is whether it is recreational physical activities or competitive athletics, sports accounts for a significant number of injuries. Musculoskeletal injuries are therefore an inevitable result of sport participation. Football has the highest incidence of catastrophic injuries, with gymnastics, hockey, basketball and cricket close behind. 

But, fear not, whatever the case may be, our expert therapists at Federation of Indian Manual Therapists can help with the rehabilitation process of your injury. The ultimate goal of the rehabilitation process is to limit the extent of the injury, reduce or reverse the impairment and functional loss, hence prevent, correct or eliminate the disability altogether. That being said, one of the most important aspects to rehabilitating a sports injury is timely treatment, so immediate attention is vital to the recovery process. 

Taking into account all the necessary parameters we create a comprehensive rehabilitation with the objective that the patient (here, the athlete) is able to safely return to the same activity and environment in which the injury occurred. Functional capacity after rehabilitation should be the same, if not better, than before injury. The treatment plan typically includes manual therapy, stretching, and strengthening exercises. Manual therapy is used to increase your range of motion and reduce scar tissue, stretching is used to improve balance and mobility, and strengthening exercises are used to support the injured and surrounding areas. These are all done in order to help you recover after your sports injury and to prevent further injury from occurring. 

Our physiotherapists are experts at injury examination and diagnosis in order to prescribe the best treatment plan for your specific needs.

A stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted or reduced, preventing brain tissue from getting oxygen and nutrients. Brain cells begin to die in minutes. It is a medical emergency, and prompt treatment is crucial. Early action can reduce brain damage and other complications. 

The process of stroke rehabilitation is crucial for complete recovery of the patient, it is provided over a stipulated period of time. The goal of stroke rehabilitation is to help the patient relearn the skills lost by the stroke affected part of the brain and hence help the patient regain independence and improve quality of life. 

The duration of stroke rehabilitation depends on the severity of the stroke and related complications. Some stroke survivors recover quickly while others require some form of long-term stroke rehabilitation, lasting possibly months or years after the stroke. 

Stroke rehabilitation plans will change according to progress in recovery as you relearn skills. With continuous practice and expert help, you can continue to make gains over time.

Stroke rehabilitation involves a variety of specialists. Specialists who can help with physical needs include: 

1) Physicians: Your primary care doctor — as well as neurologists and specialists in physical medicine and rehabilitation — can guide your care and help prevent complications. These physicians can also help you to gain and maintain healthy lifestyle behaviours to avoid another stroke. 

2) Rehabilitation nurses: Nurses who specialise in caring for people with limitations to activities can help you incorporate the skills you learn into your daily routines. 

3) physiotherapists : These therapists help you relearn movements such as walking and keeping your balance. 

4) Occupational therapists: These therapists help you relearn hand and arm use for daily skills such as bathing, tying your shoes or buttoning your shirt. Occupational therapists can also address swallowing and cognitive issues, and safety in your home. 

Geriatric physical therapy covers a wide area of ailments concerning the elderly. There are many conditions that affect people as they grow older and include but are not limited to the following:

arthritis, osteoporosis, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, hip and joint replacement, balance disorders, incontinence, etcetera. Geriatric physiotherapists specialise in providing therapy for such conditions and ailments. 

Physiotherapists play a key role in enabling older people to use a number of the body’s systems effectively to enhance mobility and independence. We can make a difference by helping older people feel comfortable and pain free in our care. 

The types of problems faced in geriatric physiotherapy can be broadly grouped into three different categories: 

1) Problems that arise from patients simply not being able to use their limbs caused by lack of exercise. These problems can be addressed by reconditioning through range-of-motion exercises among other exercises. 

2) Another category geriatric physiotherapy deals with is cardiovascular disease, like heart disease and stroke. Our physiotherapy professionals have an array of tools at their disposal to work with these conditions. Exercise, aqua therapy, electrical stimulation, and more can be used in this regard. 

3) The third category is skeletal problems. Geriatric physiotherapy helps people who have these disorders, such as osteoporosis and osteoarthritis. These problems require special attention and expert care as osteoporosis makes patients frail, and osteoarthritis is very painful. 

Paediatric physiotherapy is provided to help children achieve their optimal physical development. Our physiotherapists have special knowledge in the movement, development and conditions that are likely to affect a baby or a growing child and treat them whether it is 1-day-old babies or adolescents. Treatment may involve soft tissue massage, mobilisation, stretching, specific therapeutic exercises and posture education. As children are unlike adults, our therapists come up with interesting exercises to encourage children to move to the best of their abilities through play and age appropriate fun and instruction. 

Paediatric physiotherapy is effective in the management of perinatal conditions, conditions diagnosed in early childhood, and injuries sustained throughout childhood and the transition to adult care. It improves physical function and quality of life. Its long-term benefits are significant and include reducing disability and the need for surgery or other more costly invasive interventions resulting in a decreased burden on future use of health care services. Paediatric physiotherapy has the main goal of diagnosing and effectively treating conditions at an early stage so that the child can live a healthy prosperous life moving forward.

We offer a wide range of paediatric physiotherapy services that treat a variety of acute and chronic conditions in different settings. Our physiotherapists assess, diagnose and treat neurological, developmental, cardiorespiratory and orthopaedic conditions in children up to 18 years of age, with a focus on improving function and increasing independence. Physiotherapy has a positive and significant impact on pulmonary function, motor control, muscle strength, and physical endurance in paediatric patients with chronic conditions such as cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. 

Post-operative physiotherapy is the key to a patient’s recovery. This surgery rehabilitation therapy is vital to restoring body strength, motility, joint movement and functionality. Our physiotherapists help patients regain muscle strength and movement so that they can perform routine tasks as soon as possible.

After undergoing any major surgery such as cardiac surgery, cancer prevention surgery, or orthopaedic surgery, physical therapy becomes an unquestionable requirement. Surgeons highly recommend rehabilitation physical therapy since it can hasten the post-operative recovery as well as reduce any swelling that follows the initial injury. Our physiotherapists carefully plan the sessions and exercise programs depending on the different phases of healing and the progress of the patient. 

In many cases, the doctor also recommends pre-surgery physiotherapy as it helps patients recover faster after surgery, specifically, increased joint movements and reduced swelling following an initial injury. This form of physiotherapy is a crucial process that involves numerous sessions and exercises to help the patient get better and resume normal physical activities and improve their quality of life. 

Physical exercises such as quadriceps sets, straight leg raises, sitting supported knee bends, stair climbing and descending and unsupported knee bends, etc. help patients re-establish muscle strength, joint motion, in order to establish full joint movement and flexibility. Advanced exercises such as standing knee bends and assisted knee bends are recommended based on the patient’s requirements and are optimal to build strength and functionality, once the patient has regained independence for a shorter distance. 

Our physiotherapists chart a comprehensive recovery plan and provide the necessary treatment as and when required based on individual progress made by the patient. 

Women’s Health Physiotherapy was founded from the clinical area of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and is the care of women in relation to childbirth, both antenatally and postnatally, including the teaching of antenatal classes, in the treatment of incontinence, and in the care of women undergoing gynaecological surgery. The scope of practice has now increased to include all health concerns of women; pelvic floor rehabilitation, pelvic organ prolapse, urinary incontinence and bladder dysfunction, faecal incontinence and evacuation dysfunction, prenatal and postpartum care, pelvic pain including endometriosis, pre and post operative care, back, hip and pelvic musculoskeletal dysfunction, coccydynia (tailbone pain), and sacroiliac dysfunction. 

In specific, pregnancy is an especially important time to consider physiotherapy. This includes prenatal, during pregnancy, and postnatal to help relieve any discomfort or pain. A lot of pregnant women experience recurrent lower back pain which can impact their ability to get a full night’s sleep or perform daily tasks. Physiotherapy is an effective way to manage any lower back aches and pains through stabilisation exercises that focus on the muscles surrounding the spine. Our physiotherapists can also help in controlling and reducing back pain for pregnant and non-pregnant women. 

Pelvic Floor Therapy is one of the most important services that we can offer women before, during, and after pregnancy. This type of physiotherapy focuses on treating the muscles in the base of the abdomen that attach to the pelvis that support bladder, bowel, and uterus functions for women. Prenatal pelvic floor physiotherapy will help prepare the body for labour and limit any damage to the pelvic area. Postnatal treatment is also important to help strengthen potentially stretched, strained, and often torn pelvic muscles. Both pre and post-childbirth, pelvic floor treatment can prevent urinary incontinence and lower back pain. 

In general, physiotherapy is a great and safe option for pregnant women to stay active which is important for an easier delivery. Furthermore, all women across the life spans, from the young athlete, the childbearing woman, the menopausal and elderly woman receive immense benefits from timely physical therapy.