Muscular Dystrophy is a devastating illness that we often associate with children. However, there are many different forms of this disease and can strike at any time during the course of one's life. Muscular Dystrophy strikes at the muscles in an affective individual, degenerating them to the point where people are no longer in control of their every day movements. All of the muscles in the body can be affected with muscular dystrophy. Although there is no cure for this debilitating condition, physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy has proven effective to the point of allowing people to retain use of their deteriorating muscles for a longer period of time and allowing them to enjoy every day activities.
People with Muscular Dystrophy normally live an average life span. Muscular Dystrophy is not a fatal disease but is severely impairing. Those who develop Muscular Dystrophy as children are the ones who are the most severely affected. Because children's bodies are still developing, Muscular Dystrophy, when contacted at an early age, can cause a more rapid progression of the deterioration of the muscles. Many children who are affected with Muscular Dystrophy end up confined to a wheelchair for the rest of their lives.
Physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy can take many forms, depending upon the type of the disease. For children who are diagnosed with this dreadful disease, physiotherapy plays an important part in preventing scoliosis, which is curvature of the spine. Through physiotherapy techniques, exercises and treatments, children diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy who seek physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy early on have a better chance of walking for a longer period of time and minimizing joint contractions, which will ease the discomfort aspect of the disease. Preventing curvature of the spine is also very important and early intervention by a licensed physiotherapist is crucial for young people affected with Muscular Dystrophy.
Another form of Muscular Dystrophy affects elderly people and is called Ophthalmoplegic Muscular Dystrophy. This affects the eye muscles and often causes drooping eyelids. It also affects swallowing. Physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy also extends to those who suffer from Ophthalmoplegic Muscular Dystrophy as exercises and treatments can strengthen the muscles of the eyes and the throat and help people suffering from this disease alleviate their symptoms.
Limb-girdle Muscular Dystrophy affects the back muscles including both the pelvis and shoulders. It can cause deterioration of these muscles and make sitting and standing painful and confine a person to a wheelchair. Physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy also encompasses those suffering from Limb-girdle Muscular Dystrophy through massage and manipulation treatments that strengthen the muscles and slow the progress of the disease.
Physiotherapy to treat muscular dystrophy has many different phases that are as diverse as the different forms of this disease. Physiotherapy is one of the only proven treatments that actually help those suffering with this condition. Treatments have come a long way over the years for those suffering from Muscular Dystrophy, and while there is still no cure, physiotherapy to treat Muscular Dystrophy can help those affected with this disease to live more pain free and productive lives.
