Physiotherapy is a tool of sorts, utilized adeptly by therapists to improve the quality of patient life- by using physical exercises to reduce pain, improve joint mobility and range of function, for better posture, for improved flexibility and is mainly recommended as a rehabilitative measure after a traumatic accident or surgery. World Physiotherapy Day is celebrated every year on Sep 8 and has annual themes. The theme for 2024 is ‘The Importance of PT in Managing Lower Back Pain’. It is the day when a global organization- World Physiotherapy was founded. The annual thematic celebrations began much later, in 1996, and that was when Sep 8 was designated ‘World Physiotherapy Day’.
The Significance of World Physiotherapy Day
The themes selected are highly relevant and help a government come up with initiatives to help the masses fight the health issue at hand. For example, last year the focus was ‘Arthritis’, and this is especially telling because India has over 180 million individuals suffering from various forms of arthritis.
The theme for this year is no less relevant, and in fact addresses a very silent epidemic of young professionals walking into clinics, complaining of severe lower back pain. The spine is a crucial structure, constructed of many bones, ligaments, muscles, and disks that help protect the spinal cord which is essentially a thick cord of nerves that runs from the brain to the rest of the body. Lower back pain, also called lumbago, affects over 42% of young Indians (18-35 years of age), and this number keeps climbing every year. The main causes include- herniated disks, muscular strain, spondylitis, arthritis, etc. The pain may be mild or may also be described as a shooting variant.
Pain Management With Physiotherapy
Managing chronic pain becomes hard when you include factors like poor posture, long working hours, a sedentary lifestyle, and poor nutrition. This is where physiotherapy can help a lot. It can help decrease pain, improve flexibility and spinal function, and ultimately- help you come up with a way to prevent future recurrences. Regular physiotherapy can help you get back on your feet, and drastically improve your quality of life. 4 different kinds of approaches may be used, and in combination, as needed- lumbar stabilization, core strengthening, postural training, and aerobic exercise respectively.
Conclusion
The main goal of a physiotherapist is to teach you the correct technique while exercising. World Physiotherapy works in conjunction with various governments every year, and a toolkit consisting of information leaflets, banners, t-shirt designs, social media activities, and a detailed activities guide is carefully curated. It hence gives us all a platform to utilize medical services available to us, and to improve our health for both now and the future!
FAQs
1) Who organizes the World PT Day activities?
The World Physiotherapy is a UK-based non-profit organization, that helps in designing various activities, designates the annual themes, and has a membership of over 6 lakh physiotherapists based all over the world.
2) What is physiotherapy?
It is the practice of using various techniques to improve and retain the body’s physical function, reduce pain, improve flexibility and range of motion, and ultimately also improve quality of life in general.
3) What conditions can physiotherapy help with?
PT can really help anyone with different degrees of pain, neurological, muscular or skeletal disorders, and is also majorly used as a rehabilitative measure after injury. It is also very helpful if you have any heart disease or respiratory issues.
4) How can physiotherapy help prevent injury?
It can teach you the correct technique, and the right posture, and also stresses the importance of doing proper stretching or warm-up before the actual workout.
5) What are the emerging trends in PT?
Wearable devices and teletherapy are some very exciting avenues that can be explored in much more detail.