A few days ago, I responded to a Tweet from Glyn Blakey (@saebouglyn) and Mary Banks (@MaryBanksy) after Mary had posted up a paper suggesting that the Saebo Mobile Arm Support (SaeboMAS) had reduced tonic muscle activity across all muscles, and that this had had a positive influence on corticomotor selectivity of biceps brachii during a counterbalanced movement tasks. This all sounds very fancy, but what it basically means is that if you support the arm, the patient who is having difficulty moving, can concentrate on one joint activity while the rest of the limb is supported. You'll get a better idea if you see a picture of the SaeboMAS at work: Seeing the paper made me wonder … [Read more...] about There are no new treatments in physiotherapy
New: Old ideas
It is an old cliche, but there is rarely anything entirely new in the world, and sometimes some of the newest and most exciting innovations are merely reinventions of old ideas. Over the last few days, a story has appeared in the news of a young All Black rugby player who, only a few weeks ago, fractured his leg in a game. The story is newsworthy for two reasons: (a) the Rugby World Cup starts in a few days time, and (b) he is only being considered to be fit to play because of a rather unusual remedy. Waisake Naholo’s recovery from a fractured fibula has been reported widely around the world, because he chose to return to Fiji to be treated by his local doctor, Isei Naiova, who had … [Read more...] about New: Old ideas