Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Evidence for canine rehabilitation and physical therapy.
- Journal:
- The Veterinary clinics of North America. Small animal practice
- Year:
- 2015
- Authors:
- Millis, Darryl L & Ciuperca, Ionut Alexandru
- Affiliation:
- Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences · United States
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
This article looks at important research on physical rehabilitation for dogs. When dogs don't move enough, their bones, muscles, and other tissues can weaken over time. Understanding how this happens helps veterinarians create effective rehabilitation plans to improve a dog's health. There are various methods used in dog rehabilitation, and while there aren't many studies specifically focused on dogs, the existing ones show that rehabilitation can be very helpful for treating different bone and nerve problems. Overall, the findings suggest that rehabilitation can be beneficial for dogs with these conditions.
Abstract
This article reviews some important studies regarding canine physical rehabilitation. Bones, cartilage, muscles, ligaments, and tendons undergo atrophy if loading is decreased. Knowledge of the changes that occur with immobilization and the time course of events helps in the development of a rehabilitation program to improve tissue integrity. Outcome assessment instruments are clinically useful indicators of patient progress and the success of rehabilitation programs. A number of physical modalities are used in canine rehabilitation, although there are relatively few canine-specific studies. Rehabilitation has specific benefits in the treatment of various orthopedic and neurologic conditions.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25432679/