What Is Post Operative Rehabilitation?
Any orthopaedic surgical procedure requires precise physiotherapy rehabiliation in order to maximise the outcome. It is important in the lead-up to many surgical procedures, to maximize your strength and condition pre-operatively. It is also a vital part of your post-operative rehabilitation.
How Does Post Operative Rehabilitation Work?
Following the surgery you may be seen by a physiotherapist before leaving hospital and given advice and exercises for the first 5 to 10 days. Having a good understanding of these exercises is an important part of the rehabilitation and will enable you to have a good outcome. Over time the exercises should be changed to more challenging exercises and progressing the number of repetitions will also build the muscle strength and improve the range of movement. The early post operative exercises generally are not sufficient on their own beyond the first 2 weeks but the injury will not tolerate more difficult exercises too early. This is where your physiotherapist can guide and assist you as to how quickly to progress the home routine for rehabilitation. Your physiotherapist can also contact your surgeon to check if he or she has any specific requirements for the post operative phase.
