It’s important to know your options and have the facts before making a decision about your health and agreeing to any surgery.
FACT – Surgery for common orthopaedic conditions often has no better results than physiotherapy intervention.
While it does happen that some people require surgery for their injuries, often physiotherapy is the better option.
Why is Physiotherapy the better option?
Studies have shown that people who avoid surgery and begin physiotherapy instead are 50% less likely to have surgery. For example, a review of knee arthritis and meniscus injuries noted that 60-70 percent of knee surgeries were avoided by patients having physiotherapy first. That’s a pretty impressive statistic, and you can imagine just how much time off work, and money people can save simply by trying physiotherapy first.
Physiotherapy is a safe and time tested interventions regulated and practiced by registered healthcare providers who are outcome and patient centred.
The same numbers hold true for shoulder injuries, low back injuries and many other interventions.
Now let’s look at some of the differences between physiotherapy and surgery.
Surgery is disruptive and can result in complications. It often involves overnight hospital stays which may lead to hospital-based infections and other unforeseen complications such as blood clots and emboli.
So why are we so addicted to surgery?
People like the idea that someone is going to “fix” them. People want a simple solution for what ails them, and people believe surgery fits the bill in many cases. It’s hard to fathom that trying physiotherapy first will result in the same or better results than surgery, yet as the stats show us physiotherapy works.
Not every surgery can be avoided, yet even in the cases where physiotherapy did not demonstrate to solve the problem the final results of patients who had physiotherapy before surgery were better than the patients who only had surgery. Physiotherapy leads to positive outcomes.
Physiotherapy treatment for knee, shoulder and back issues is a science, and a registered physiotherapist is aware of the best practice guidelines to address your particular condition.
As a physiotherapist, I teach people that Physiotherapy uses a variety of techniques to help people self-manage their problems. The advantages of physiotherapy are that there are no major side effects, physiotherapy helps you gain strength, flexibility and teach you how to prevent future issues.
It’s logical to get physiotherapy first if you want to optimize your recovery from injury or if you have musculoskeletal pains that require intervention.
At Focus Physiotherapy our clinics place your recovery from injuries as the centre of our model of care. This patient centred approach to your recovery set us apart. So whether you present to us to avoid a surgery or present to us to return to your competitive sport out team is ready to get you back on track in the safest manner possible.
Book your appointment at one of our Focus Physiotherapy locations today!