Touchette Regional Hospital recognizes the importance of keeping a healthy heart and the benefits of physical therapy, as February is American Heart Month.
Taking care of your heart is important and physical therapy (PT) goes hand in hand with a variety of activities like exercise, education, nutrition, and more to help those with heart conditions. It also focuses on teaching people about healthier lifestyles and better management of heart disease.
When it comes to heart health, most people think about things like eating right, avoiding smoking, and exercising regularly. What most people don't think about is PT.
If you're healthy and active, you most likely don't need physical therapy services, but 3 out of 4 adults aren't exercising regularly. For those individuals, PT may be just the thing they need. PT is the treatment of disease, injury, or deformity by physical methods such as massage, heat treatment, and exercise rather than by drugs or surgery.
“It's not uncommon to get injured, then never get back to the old routine. PT can help with the old injury and implement a plan to safely return to regular activity,” said Mike Riley, Jr., Director of Physical Therapy at Touchette Regional Hospital. “It's also not uncommon for people to try to be more active on their own, only to stir up pain somewhere - like their back, hip, or shoulder. PT can help figure out the cause of the pain, help correct it, and implement a plan to help that person reach their goals.”
PT can help to safely increase activity levels after a major medical issue like a heart attack, stroke, or even cancer. Recent research has shown improvements in cardiovascular fitness, fatigue levels and even pain in cancer patients who participate in a personalized physical fitness plan from a PT program.
“Often times, PT does not require a referral from your primary care provider,” explained Riley. “After a thorough evaluation we work with your provider and communicate the recommended plan of care.”
Whatever barriers to physical activity exist, PT can likely help overcome them. Our team of experienced physical therapists and physical therapist assistants can help you work around whatever issues you have so you can safely elevate your heart rate and keep cardiovascular disease away.
Touchette Regional Hospital offers physical therapy at locations: Centreville, Sauget, and Belleville. More information on physical therapy at Touchette’s 3 PT locations can be found at www.touchette.org/services/physical-therapy.
###
About Touchette Regional Hospital
Touchette Regional Hospital has proudly served the communities of the metro-east for more than 60 years. We offer 24-hour Emergency Department, Intensive Care, Laboratory, Radiology, Medical Specialty Services, Transportation, Sleep Center, Physical Therapy, Senior Care Services, Start Now Breast Cancer Awareness Program, Special Needs Dentistry for children, and Behavioral Health (inpatient and outpatient). For more information, visit www.touchette.org.