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Zero-G Physical Therapy
Information provided by Jessica Bosari - Published: 2011-03-24
Is In-home Therapy Better for Patients than High Tech In-clinic Care?
Sometimes the old ways are the best ways.
Most of us or our elderly loved ones will have to receive physical therapy treatment at some point in our lives. For extreme cases of disability where patients need to re-learn to walk, there is some debate over whether it is best to treat these patients at home or in a clinic. Recent developments in high tech machinery have found their way into the physical therapy clinics, bringing questions about the lack of human touch these patients receive during therapy.
New Technology for In-Clinic Physical Therapy
A machine called the ZeroG helps patients gain the strength and balance to walk normally after an injury or severe illness. Duke University recently completed a thorough research study on the effectiveness of the ZeroG technology compared to intensive home therapy for stroke patients who needed to re-learn walking. The study showed little difference between the effectiveness of the home therapy and the ZeroG therapy. In fact, the ZeroG therapy was considered slightly more dangerous because it caused more patients to fall during therapy.
Both Methods Bring Improvements
During ZeroG therapy, a patient is strapped into a mechanical harness that supports the patient's weight and allows the patient to walk on a treadmill. Therapists can control the amount of support the harness provides at any time. For in-home therapy, patients received strength-building exercises as well walking time three times a week. Researchers are quick to point out that both types of therapy presented increased mobility, balance, and quality of life for the patients in the survey. Compared to typical physical therapy treatments, both the in-home and the ZeroG treatments brought better overall results.
ZeroG Harness Requires Additional Therapist
One of the potential problems with the ZeroG system is that it requires more than one therapist to help the patient through the therapy. The in-home sessions could be completed with the assistance of a single therapist in most cases. The additional therapist needed for ZeroG therapy sessions, as well as the cost of the machinery, could drive up the price of physical therapy for disabled patients. The research showed that patients who were involved in the in-home therapy were more likely to stick with the therapy sessions longer, which helped them recover more fully than patients who dropped out of the ZeroG program early.
High Tech Patients More Prone to Falls
Surprisingly, the patients who used ZeroG were shown to have a higher risk of falling than the patients who received treatment in-home. One reason for the problem is that the physical therapists need to help patients into the harness in the first place. Early in the therapy process, the patient may not have the strength or balance necessary to cooperate fully with the harnessing procedure. Patients who used ZeroG were also shown to experience a higher rate of dizziness and fainting during their physical therapy compared to those who exercised at home.
Jessica Bosari writes for therapistschools.com. The site seeks to match students with the best physical therapy schools and answer important questions such as, "What can I expect for a physical therapist salary?
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- This web page is from the Disabled World Physical Therapy section which provides: Physical therapy rehabilitative health exercise and equipment designed to assist people regain or improve physical abilities.
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