Physiotherapists in Batley treat many different conditions including the issues profiled below.

Ice Treatment and Physiotherapy

Ice and other cold treatments are important techniques in the armoury of physiotherapists and useful for a wide range of conditions. The major use of cold therapy or cryotherapy is to reduce and control inflammation and swelling in recent or acute injuries to the musculoskeletal system. In the first few days after injury heat will increase the metabolic rate and may aggravate the injury while cold will do the opposite and also provide some pain relief. Pain relief is important as a reduction in pain is not only pleasant for the patient but allows them to move the part and contract the muscles more effectively, beginning rehabilitation of the area.

Ice should not be directly applied to the skin, especially if packs from a freezer are used, as this may cause an ice burn which is a form of skin damage. Patients are assessed by the physiotherapist for safety and a layer of wet material is placed inbetween the skin and the ice pack. The skin is checked at intervals to make sure it is not reacting badly to the cold and the treatment time may be up to twenty minutes. Compression may be more important than cold and often they are combined.

Knee Cartilage Injuries

The knee cartilages are properly known as menisci and are almost circular cartilaginous structures which look like banked tracks, sitting between the flat upper surfaces of the tibia and the large rounded condyles of the lower end of the femur. Their function is not entirely understood but may be to guide the femoral condyles as they slide and glide, to distribute synovial fluid evenly around the knee or to give sensory feedback about the complex positions adopted by the knee at any moment. The menisci are vulnerable at times as the large femoral condyles can roll over them and being attached to the tibial upper surface they cannot always move out of the way.

This can result in the meniscus suffering compressive forces applied by the condyle and becoming injured in the process. Tears of the menisci are common injuries and occur in various patterns, common examples being a parrot beak tear and a bucket handle tear. The parrot beak is a small tear at the edge which then appears like a bird.s beak. If the tear is along the substance of the meniscus it can cause a loop with attachments at both ends, like a bucket handle.