What’s The Difference Between Treatment And Rehab

Ever had a muscle strain, broken bone, or twisted ankle?

If you’ve ever had an injury involving your bones or muscles, you will likely receive treatment or rehab—or perhaps even both—from an orthopedic doctor. Orthopedic doctors could handle a broad range of musculoskeletal conditions and injuries. However, treatment isn’t the same as rehab, and some people might get confused with them.

Let’s talk about the differences between treatment and rehab and where you can go for high-quality orthopedic care in Baltimore.

What Is Treatment

Many orthopedic conditions can be treated and cured. However, some people have lifelong diagnoses, and some orthopedic injuries may also need management for their effects. Treatment, therefore, involves medical procedures that help treat or manage your condition or injury.

Treatments can include:

Medication

If you currently have an orthopedic injury or condition, your orthopedic doctor may prescribe some medications to manage pain and bring you relief.

Usually, they start with the most conservative treatment option available: painkillers. When those don’t work, they may prescribe NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) or other stronger medication. If the pain persists after taking them, you might need a different treatment.

Physical Therapy

Every treatment plan for musculoskeletal injuries will likely include physical therapy. It includes exercises that build up strength and improve your range of motion. It also offers long-term relief for all types of orthopedic pain.

Depending on your needs, massage therapy and chiropractic care might be used to alleviate pain and accelerate injury healing.

Steroid Injections

Are you struggling with joint pain? Orthopedic doctors usually encourage steroid injections for that. You might also be given anesthetics to reduce inflammation and manage symptoms. But the effects only last for a few months. Steroid injections are often combined with physical therapy and prescribed when oral medications don’t work.

Nerve Blocks

A numbing anesthetic is delivered to an area around the nerves that send pain signals to the brain. That alleviates the pain and other symptoms that are causing discomfort. First, your doctor will locate the nerves using image-guided technology, then administer the nerve block.

Viscosupplementation

Usually used for patients with osteoarthritis. Viscosupplementation involves delivering hyaluronic acid into the joints where you feel intolerable pain. Osteoarthritis is generally marked by a low level of synovial fluid in the joints, causing painful symptoms. Hyaluronic acid acts as grease to the joints to provide arthritis pain relief.

Surgery

There are also surgical treatments available for orthopedic conditions and injuries. However, it’s not usually recommended unless nonsurgical treatments fail to work. Some surgical procedures offered by orthopedic surgeons include:

  • Joint fusion
  • Joint replacements
  • Keyhole surgery to remove bone and cartilage debris
  • Fixing fractures from injury or osteoporosis
  • Tendon or ligament repair or reconstruction

What Is Rehab?

While treatments involve medically assisted procedures, rehab treats muscle, joint, or bone pain and limitations using conservative measures. Rehab could be used to treat injuries and conditions or to recover from surgery. It’s used in combination with some treatments as well.

Physical rehabilitation covers two major types of therapies:

Physical Therapy

Physical therapy treats orthopedic conditions or injuries using physical techniques, such as exercise, cold and heat treatments, stretching, and massage. It helps you restore your body’s strength, flexibility, function, and mobility.

While physical therapy can be practiced in a hospital or an outpatient clinic, you can also do it at home. Not only does it help you optimize your physical abilities, but it also manages pain, too.

Occupational Therapy

Though quite similar to physical therapy, occupational therapy focuses more on helping you gain independence in performing daily activities. Such activities may include getting dressed, walking up and down stairs, brushing your teeth, or even simply getting out of bed.

Each session would be customized to your normal living behaviors. You may work on any of the following during your sessions:

  • Fine motor skills and dexterity
  • Hand-eye coordination
  • Movement adaptation
  • Balance training

Orthopedic rehabilitation can take place in many settings. You could do it in the hospital, an outpatient clinic, or at home. During rehab, a physical therapist will evaluate your condition or injury, limitations, symptoms, pain levels, and recommendations from your doctor. From there, they can devise an individualized treatment program. Objective measurements would be used to monitor and track your progress.

Orthopedic Treatment and Rehab in Baltimore

If you’re looking to treat or manage an orthopedic condition or injury, the Orthopaedic Associates of Central Maryland is here for you. With our finest healthcare providers and a set of experienced and caring staff, we will ensure to give you only the best care possible. We provide multiple physician offices and physical therapy clinics to deliver the best orthopedics.

To know more about our services, call us today at (443) 478-4449.

We look forward to serving you!