A growing amount of notice is going toward brain injuries and disorders, for soldiers, athletes and car crash victims. The attention is awesome, and now innovative methods are being discussed that may help victims. One new idea is known as NDT (Neurodevelopmental Therapy). This can be used in many kinds of therapy, including physical therapy for kids.
Basically, Neurodevelopmental Therapy is a way to look at issues on a targeted, individual level. Pediatric physical therapists use hands-on exercises and advanced equipment to train patients on activities. For example, consider the case of a child with disabilities who can't walk due to the problem might choose a series of small goals. One would probably be moving the feet from the footrest on a wheelchair using the patient's own muscles. The physical therapist would help the patient hands-on.
Neurodevelopmental Therapy is patient-driven, because each patient has set goals. For children with special needs, Mom and Dad may set the goals. For adults dealing with problems such as TBI and stroke, the goal could be about balance. Elite physical therapists who have used these techniques say that the patient's perception of treatment makes a huge difference in their healing processes.
In addition to the intuitive sense that it works, Neurodevelopmental Therapy truly is effective. Physical therapists say their patients need fewer assistive devices and less adaptive equipment and improve at proper positioning. Improvement is possible in speech, eating, movement and other occupational therapy tasks.
For children with disabilities, physical therapists can use Neurodevelopmental Therapy to help them have more control. This can include learning to support oneself, maneuver stairs, or even stand up without help. Experts believe that at least a little improvement is within reach of almost everyone, even those with severe disabilities.
The research about Neurodevelopmental Therapy isn't very extensive, but the subject isn't really being challenged. Many of the studies have been done on just a few patients, so aren't widely generalizable. But the ideas are pretty commonsense and a growing number of physical therapists for children and other specialists are trying it.
If you need help with speech, eating and mobility, consider finding a non verbal autism San Diego Ca expert for a few sessions.