Acromioclavicular Joint Injuries – Part One
With its extreme mobility and limited stability and power, the shoulder joint is vulnerable to injuries in sport and activities, requiring expert management to recover entirely to normal. The shoulder joint proper is known as the glenohumeral joint and above this lies the acromioclavicular joint. Frequent reasons for injuring this joint are falls from skiing or bicycling and most contact sports. The joint is made up of the acromion, the end of the scapula, and the lateral end of the collar bone or clavicle and is vulnerable to forceful injuries. ... Read More
Falling Over
This morning it was freezing and icy on Hampstead Heath and I fell over, suddenly and as is typical, with no warning. One moment I was walking and talking, the next my hand, forearm, shoulder and hip took a hit as I fell on the ice. Sliding down sideways and hitting several parts of me in turn helped spread the force although this was entirely by luck rather than judgment. I did manage to avoid joining the many thousands of people who fell over recently during the Christmas holiday in the UK as the weather unhappily conspired to deliver a risky mixture of freezing temperatures with short bursts of rain. ... Read More
Hamstring Injuries
In the back of the upper leg (the posterior thigh) lie the hamstrings, a group of muscles which are particularly vulnerable to injuries and ongoing pain problems in athletic individuals. The upper part of the muscles in the upper thigh and lower buttock are injured much more often than other parts, with the outer side of the leg also more affected. There are no normal names for the three muscles involved which are called the semitendinosus, biceps femoris and semimembranosus, with the biceps femoris being most often involved. ... Read More
Cystic Fibrosis
In Caucasian populations cystic fibrosis is the inherited and fatal disease which is commonest and results from recessive genes from both partners which are normally not affected by the disease. The exocrine glands are the anatomical areas affected and repeated and persistent respiratory tract infection is the most difficult problem. The abnormalities of the glands affect a number of organ systems in the body but the end stages of lung disease are the most common reasons for the death of a patient. ... Read More
Management Of Hip Replacement By Physiotherapists
Human populations are ageing across the world, particularly in developed countries such as the USA, Europe and Japan, with some developing countries such as China set to follow them over the next decades. This will place a large burden on physiotherapy and medical services as countries struggle to cope with steadily increasing levels of osteoarthritis (OA), an age-related degenerative condition. OA is responsible for significant levels of medical expenditure, disability, pain and work loss and provision of services such as joint replacement will be a challenge. Quality of life improvements after medical interventions vary but for joint replacement are some of the highest of all medical procedures. ... Read More
Total Knee Replacement and Physiotherapy
Major joint replacement is one of the success stories of the late twentieth century, providing the greatest changes in quality of life measurements of all medical treatments or operations. Total knee replacement has now developed from a less predictable operation to a routine procedure with good long-term results for severely osteoarthritic joints. Populations in developed countries are rapidly getting older and total knee replacement is set to overtake total hip replacement as the most performed joint replacement. ... Read More
Physiotherapy And The Aircast Cryocuff
Physiotherapy management of knee injuries and knee operations requires a good way of applying cryotherapy to counter the swelling and pain involved. The Aircast Cryocuff gives physiotherapists this option as traditional ways of applying cold are clumsy and not very effective. ... Read More
Explanation Of The Wrist
The ability to position the fingers and thumb in precise postures is vital for the highly coordinated use of the hand and the wrist has a significant role to play in this function. The shoulder blade and the shoulder perform the gross positioning of the arm, the elbow places the hand at varying distances from the body, the forearm dictates the angle of the wrist and the wrist performs the final positioning of the hand. The closer to the hand the body parts come the more precise and fine the movement becomes. ... Read More
Gall Bladder Surgery
A rapid recovery from this operation is typical and patients are unlikely to experience any serious complications. Minor problems are very common after this intervention so patients should be aware of these as well about the more serious complications which occur much more rarely. ... Read More
Flat Feet
Flat footedness is divided into acquired flat foot which is a condition which develops after we have attained maturity and congenital flat foot which is a common condition and often not of pathological significance. Adult flat foot has many potential causes which include dislocation and fractures, foot abnormalities, arthritic changes and neurological conditions. The commonest cause however of this foot problem is a dysfunction of one of the foot tendons, the posterior tibial muscle tendon. The methods by which the tibialis posterior tendon malfunctions are varied and ascribed to degeneration, inflammation or trauma. ... Read More
