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Aquatic therapy is a physical therapy intervention involving manual therapy and exercises in the water.
Musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, pulmonary, and integumentary disorders may be appropriate for aquatic therapy treatment. Arthritic pain, low back pain, obesity, balance or gait deficits, general weakness, and fibromyalgia are common conditions often treated with aquatic therapy.
Arthritis affects 40 million people (almost 1 out of 6 adults). Osteoarthritis (OA) is the leading reason for joint replacement surgery in people over age 60. More than a million people every year are getting a total joint replacement; most typically they are an artificial hip or knee. The goals of therapy after a replacement (knee or hip) are pain relief, decrease edema, strengthening; stretching/flexibility, improving range of motion (ROM), progression of ambulation (decreased deviations and increased distance), independence with activities of daily living (ADL), proprioceptive training to improve body awareness and balance, and lastly to return to functional activities. Aquatic therapy has numerous benefits that assist with these goals, and patients don’t even have to know how to swim.
The health benefits of water therapy have been acknowledged throughout history to help treat various ailments, including muscle pain. Today, we also use water therapy to manage various musculoskeletal conditions, including low back pain.
Everyone at ProActive Physical Therapy would like to welcome the Noonan Family Swim School to our building in Carlsbad. The Noonan Family Swim School is the largest swim school in San Diego County.
“All three of our clinics now have access to aquatic therapy,” says Amyn Valji, co-owner. “There are only a few clinics that offer aquatic therapy, due to the difficulty of finding warm water to use. Now having a pool, either in our building or located directly next door to our building, we can offer a complete setting for our patients.”
ProActive has been providing pool therapy in Rancho Bernardo/4S Ranch for approximately two years to date. Having a pool in Carlsbad will allow the Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista and San Marcos communities to access pool therapy in a private facility. Other physical therapy clinics that have access to pools currently provide pool therapy in public facilities, such as a gym or fitness center.
“We already have our first two patients!” says Kim, office manager of the ProActive Carlsbad facility. “There is a buzz in our clinic. Everyone has been watching the construction and people cannot wait for the pool to be completed.”
Please feel free to come visit us to see the new pool. You can also find out about the Noonan Family Swim School at www.noonanfamilyswimschool.com.
Embrace the “pressure” and push through the “resistance”!
Most people don’t like to be under pressure or deal with resistance from something, but these are two forces that are a huge benefit of aquatic therapy.
“Hydrostatic pressure is the pressure exerted by a fluid at equilibrium at a given point within the fluid, due to the force of gravity. Hydrostatic pressure increases in proportion to depth measured from the surface. This is due to the increasing weight of fluid exerting a downward force from above.” The force/pressure being put on the body, greatly enhances
Most people don’t like to be under pressure or deal with resistance from something, but these are two forces that are a huge benefit of aquatic therapy.
“Hydrostatic pressure is the pressure exerted by a fluid at equilibrium at a given point within the fluid, due to the force of gravity. Hydrostatic pressure increases in proportion to depth measured from the surface. This is due to the increasing weight of fluid exerting a downward force from above.” The force/pressure being put on the body, greatly enhances venous return and cardiac functions. Buoyancy also assists with venous return by counteracting the downward pull of gravity with the up-thrust of the water. With increased venous return, you can exercise more vigorously with less stress on the cardiovascular system and reduce training heart rate. Another benefit of hydrostatic pressure, swelling is reduced in the injured or edematous joints or limbs below the water. As you can see, being put under this type of pressure allows you to work harder with less symptoms.
Resistance of the water will make you stronger because it provides about 12 times the resistance of air. The resistance of water also allows improvement in balance, sensory awareness, and strength in all muscle directions. The turbulence of the water and resistance during movements puts more demand on your balance and promotes circulation. Patients feel safe in the water due to their movements are slower and less likely to be jerky or ballistic.
With the assistance of therapeutic water temperature, buoyancy, hydrostatic pressure, and the normal resistance of water, aquatic therapy patients can get a workout without feeling like they are doing a workout. So embrace the “pressure” and push through the “resistance” and jump into a fun, strengthening aquatic program at ProActive Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine.
Literally, 3 steps will get you into the pool with ProActive Physical Therapy at Noonan Family Swim School. Buoyancy is what makes you feel the “weight loss”. Buoyancy is the upward thrust of the water acting in the opposite direction of the force of gravity. The buoyant force an object feels depends on the weight of the volume of fluid the object displaces. An object in water will experience a greater buoyant force compared to air, because water has more weight. Your center of gravity is generally located in the pelvic region, but your
Pool therapy is not just for summertime at ProActive. ProActive Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine’s Aquatic/Pool Therapy is performed at a beautiful indoor pool at the Noonan’s Swimming School located next door to our 4S Ranch facility. The pool is heated to a therapeutic 90 degrees and is 3½ to 4½ feet deep. The patients participate in an individual, injury specific, aquatic exercise program where the instructor can and will get in the water with the patients or may instruct from the deck. The friendly warm environment is shared with no more than 6 patients. The pool provides support, relaxation, and comfort.
Aquatic therapy benefits numerous patients and you don’t even have to know how to swim. Patients who will benefit range from total joint replacements to athletes that need to maintain limited weight bearing; patients with fibromyalgia; patients with gait difficulty; patients with multiple injuries and overweight patients. There are numerous benefits to aquatic therapy over land-based therapy, and they start with the benefit of the warm water. Warm water relaxes muscles and allows for improved joint range of motion. Noonan’s Swimming School keeps their pool in the perfect therapeutic water temperature range 88-96 degrees. Buoyancy is a huge factor that wins over land-based therapy because the deeper you immerse yourself in water the less you weigh and the less shock is transmitted through you bones and joints. Also, the resistance of the water improves balance and sensory awareness. With all these benefits, the pool allows us to help you return to your pre-injury self safely and comfortably.
