Ahmedabad: Binge-watching shows until late in the night, holding the mobile phone between the ear and shoulder, sitting on an unsuitable chair, and leading a physically inactive life are some reasons physiotherapists say people below 45 now account for about 25% of their patients.
“Earlier, most patients were aged 50 or above, while younger patients usually sought treatment for fractures or specific medical conditions. The study focused on patients above 60 years with knee osteoarthritis. Because of lifestyle-related issues, today, one in every four patients is below 45, mainly. Some develop chronic pain due to poor posture, while for many others, the problem is linked to excessive use of computers, laptops and mobile phones,” Trivedi said. “Earlier, many stroke cases turned fatal due to lack of awareness or emergency care.
She added that activity-based rehabilitation has also been introduced, where patients receive stimuli through computer-based games as part of therapy.
Manish Trivedi, a city physiotherapist, said the profile of patients has changed over the past decade. With greater awareness, more patients are receiving timely intervention and subsequently require short-term or long-term physiotherapy support,” Shah said. Chair yoga for osteoarthritis patients Vidhi Parmar, a postgraduate student at SBB College of Physiotherapy, and lecturer Payal Gahlot, have completed a study on the impact of “chair yoga” for patients unable to perform conventional yoga due to conditions such as osteoarthritis. The results showed improvement in flexibility, balance and mental well-being, according to Gahlot.
They were given chair-based yoga exercises for six weeks, including asanas such as Parvatasana and Utkatasana.