Ice can be an important part of treating an Acute Injury. This acute inflammatory stage is also normal after a toenail surgery, and Oakville Chiropodist Brittney will educate her patients on what to expect in this stage. Physiotherapy treatment is mainly focused on education to allow the body to move into the next healing stage and decreasing pain and swelling. In this phase, the “R.I.C.E.” protocol in advised – rest, ice, compression and elevation. The process breaks down and digests damaged cells and sets the stage for the next phase. The increased pressure from the swelling in the area as well as the chemicals irritating local nerves cause more pain.
This is a result of a vascular and cellular response that releases required chemicals for the healing process and allows for an increase in blood flow to the area. Immediately following an injury, there will be inflammation and bleeding in the injured area that results in pain, redness, swelling and heat. Inflammation has a bad reputation, but acute (fresh) inflammation is actually essential for tissue repair. The 3 Stages of Healing: Acute Inflammatory Phase: Day 1-7 One of the main risks of future injury is how well you rehabbed or recovered from a previous injury / surgery. Physiotherapy helps facilitate quicker, proper healing resulting in a smaller risk of re-injury, chronic pain and dysfunction. The timeline for healing depends on the individual, extent of the injury, age and overall health status. The stage of healing helps determine the treatment progressions and what to do / not to do.Īfter an injury, soft tissue structures in the body undergo a natural healing process through specific phases of healing, regardless if any physiotherapy intervention was done. Along with the history of the injury, the assessment findings can help Physiotherapists determine the diagnosis as well as the stage of healing you are in. It is important to communicate the history of when and how the injury occurred. A lot of decisions regarding treatment and education to our patients is based on where they fall on on the stages of healing.Īs Physiotherapists we assess numerous patients at different stages of healing for various of injuries. At our Oakville Physiotherapy, Massage and Foot Clinic we see people for a variety of injuries and issues from a fresh ankle sprain or chronic rotator cuff injury seen by a Physiotherapist, to a follow-up appointment for ingrown toenail surgery by Brittney the Chiropodist.