Most people who are suffering from an injury or chronic pain prefer noninvasive treatments, like medicine or physical therapy. However, in severe cases of injury or pain, you may need surgery.
Surgery can be scary because of the risks associated with it and the lengthy recovery times. It doesn’t have to be this way, though. Surgery may always have its risks, but you can improve your recovery experience with pre-surgical rehab, or pre-hab, from an experienced physical therapist.
Surgery patients need pre-surgical rehab from a physical therapist for these three reasons
Physical therapists are health care professionals who specialize in treatments that affect the bones, joints, muscles, ligaments and tendons in your body. These treatments can help prepare your body for surgery to help:
- Reduce pain — Pre-hab can help strengthen and stretch your muscles, ligaments and tendons. This can help reduce pressure on the areas affected by surgery and provide your body with more support. Additionally, physical therapy exercises can improve blood flow; the improved flow delivers more oxygen and nutrients to your body to promote recovery and reduce pain.
- Increase recovery speed — Recovering from surgery can mean long hospital stays and longer recovery times. Pre-hab can cut your hospital stay shorter and increase the speed of your recovery. One study reveals that knee and hip replacement patients who did at least six weeks of pre-hab were 73% less likely to need in-patient rehab after surgery.
- Improve mobility — Surgery can make it difficult for you to move on your own. Pre-hab can improve your strength, flexibility, coordination and balance so you can live more independently during your recovery.
What techniques can your physical therapist use in your pre-surgical rehab plan?
Physical therapists always work closely with patients to develop personalized treatment programs. Each pre-surgical rehab program looks different. This is because each person is affected differently by surgery. But pre-hab plans generally include some of the following therapy techniques:
- Manual therapy — This is a category of therapy that’s also called hands-on therapy. Manual therapy methods all involve the physical therapist mobilizing and manipulating joints and/or soft tissue. Manual therapy can also be very effective after a surgery. A study on a hip replacement patient shows that manual therapy helped eliminate post-surgical pain after just four therapy sessions.
- Therapeutic exercises — Some movements will be discouraged after you have surgery. However, others can help you regain strength and function. They may also be helpful at reducing pain. One medical study reveals that just one session of therapeutic exercises was able to improve knee range of motion by 25% when used after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery.
Other therapy techniques that may be used by your physical therapist are:
Excel Sports & Physical Therapy offers effective pre-surgical rehab
If you need to have surgery soon, you should schedule an appointment for pre-surgical rehab with our Excel Sports & Physical Therapy team. We offer free screenings that can reveal issues that need to be addressed before your surgery. Additionally, our physical therapists can build you an individualized pre-hab plan intended to help reduce your pain from surgery and improve your recovery times.
Unable to come by for an in-person session before surgery? No problem! Our team offers therapy services you can use right from home, including virtual therapy and at-home care sessions.
Contact our team today for more information about our pre-hab services or to schedule an initial appointment.
Our Locations
FAQ
Conditions Library
