What is Aqua Therapy?
By RubySamy, Contributing writer Aquatic therapy, also know as pool therapy, is one of the latest alternative medical treatment, which is performed in water. Aquatic therapy consists of various exercises which are specifically designed to enhance, restore and maintain the patients functional abilities. These days aquatic therapy is being used to treat variety of medical conditions which can be acute, transient or chronic. Water has healing powers and aquatic therapy uses the physical properties of water for treating various ailments. Aquatic therapy helps a great deal to rehabilitate the patients after an injury or chronic illness to a great extent. It helps to avoid the amount of weight placed on the joints by exercise outside the water. The exercises performed in water prove to be much more beneficial as the pull of gravity on the body is not as strong as on land. Movement and functional activity in water is much more comfortable and easy as compared to exercising on land. Benefits o
Aqua Therapy is warm water rehabilitation which focuses on the prevention and treatment of injury or disease through physical means. Water can play an important role in injury rehabilitation. There is no pounding of the body in the water; all of the movements are cushioned by the water. The advantage is that following an injury or surgery, water exercises can begin sooner than traditional physical therapy, thereby cutting down recovery time. Exercise in general helps to speed healing, and the best place to exercise is in a therapeutic warm water pool, to prevent or minimize the secondary damage that occurs after an injury. This damage includes stiffening, swelling and loss of muscle mass. Our physiotherapist will work as your partner in the pool. Even if you are unable to walk or stand on land, you will still be able to exercise in the water, either at neck level or in deep water with a floatation device. Our Physiotherapist has a detailed understanding of how the body works, and is sp
Aqua therapy is perhaps the oldest technique of treating the ailments. This form of therapy involves the use of water for comforting pains and treating diseases. The active agent in the treatment of ailments actually being heat and cold and water plays the role of carrier only. The use of aqua therapy has been found in many ancient civilizations. Egyptians used to take baths with essential oils and flowers, while Romans had shared public baths for their citizens. Hot water springs can improve health by increasing circulation of the body is a long accepted fact. Hippocrates prescribed bathing in spring water for cure. A Dominican monk, Sebastian Kneipp, again revived aqua therapy during the 19th century. Currently, aqua therapy is being used to treat arthritis, burns, spasticity, ankylosing spondylitis, musculoskeletal disorders, spinal cord injuries and stroke patients with paralysis.
Aqua therapy is physical therapy performed in the water. It can be used to treat a variety of medical problems, and McClay said physicians are prescribing aqua therapy more often these days. “Aqua therapy can address a broad spectrum of injuries to areas such as the ankles, knees or hips,” she said. “It can also be prescribed for ailments such as arthritis or multiple sclerosis.” 3 reasons water helps Three characteristics of water help make aqua therapy beneficial to patients: buoyancy, resistance and temperature. The buoyancy of water supports the weight of the body and makes the exercise less stressful on the patient’s joints. Less stress on the joints means less pain. Less pain allows the patient to exercise longer. Exercising in the water can also provide resistance without the use of weights. “Many more muscle groups can be targeted as water will provide resistance to movement in any direction,” McClay said. Add the water resistance factor to the buoyancy, and a person can build
