Physiotherapists in Warwickshire treat many different conditions including the condition profiled below.

Activity and Muscle Strength

When a person starts to train for strength or power they start exerting high forces for short periods of time, i.e. they use heavier weights for smaller numbers of repetitions. This causes large changes in the fast twitch type 2 muscles fibres, increasing their size but not changing their number. This process is known as mechanically induced hypertrophy and results from the muscle cells synthesising increased amounts of muscle proteins to build into larger muscle. Muscles can also add new sections to the areas where they join the tendon if they are subjected to stretching forces.

In contrast, if muscles are inactive they reduce the making of muscle proteins within a few hours and the muscle starts to atrophy, to lose size and strength. In injuries if a muscle is immobilised in a shortened position both its size and its length will be reduced, with non-contracting substances becoming more dominant. This leads to a muscle which is shorter, more stiff and less easily lengthened, a significantly negative outcome in that immobilisation for fractures will have unwanted effects on the local muscular structures. Modern methods concentrate on immobilising a joint only if essential and only for the shortest necessary period.

Physiotherapy and Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis is a troublesome pain problem which occur in the sole of the foot in the heel region and can be very disabling. Underneath the heel on the calcaneal bone is a bony spur which is one end of the plantar ligament, a ligament which stretches along the foot towards the front. A sudden onset of severe pain on weight bearing on the heel is typical, with the person suddenly feeling they have to walk on tiptoe to avoid the pain. This conditions can occur in anyone but is more common in certain types of arthritic condition where the ligament and bone junctions are affected by the disease.

Physiotherapy assessment begins with a history of the condition and any other medical conditions the patient may be suffering. The foot is examined and the tender area palpated for the typical pain on pressure. The foot posture is checked to see if the patient has a flat foot or a heel deviation in standing,, and the tightness of the calf muscles is also assessed. Treatment involves stretches to the calf muscles, ultrasound to the area and silicone heel pads to reduce the force through the painful area. If not successful then injection of the area can be performed.

Physiotherapists in Warwickshire have contributed some of the many articles on this site such as the one extracted below.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic, inflammatory joint disease which occurs in about 1% of the population, causing a symmetrical polyarthritis and generalized involvement of many tissues such as the skin, eyes, lungs and heart. Due to the system-wide effects patients often feel fatigue, have malaise and marked stiffness in the mornings. As RA causes peripheral joint damage it is the cause of a large amount of disability in sufferers, however recent scientific advances in drug therapy hold out the hope of reducing or preventing joint damage. Infections are often linked with RA but an agreed cause has not been found.Rheumatoid arthritis is a serious joint and system disease, responsible for large amounts of functional disability, complications from the disease and some reduced life expectancy. About 30% of patients are unable to work after five years with the disease, and half have a marked drop in function after ten, both due to the disease effects on activities of daily l...

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