How Biofeedback works to treat patients

Biofeedback can be used for patients recovering from stroke or post-operation for orthopaedic issues.  Biofeedback is a therapeutic means by which medical conditions are treated with the use of electrical sensors connected to the body to measure vitals. These sensors are connected to a monitor which furnishes you with information about your body. Biofeedback is non-invasive and helpful in gaining control over your body system.

Variations of Biofeedback

There are several types of biofeedback. Some measure brainwaves and correlate it with your response to certain stimuli and stressors. The variations of your body temperature over a period can also be measured to help you map situations and conditions that elevate or reduce your body temperature. Amount of sweat, pulse rates and many other body functions can be amply monitored by biofeedback.

Of interest is electromyography (EMG) biofeedback. It can track changes in the muscle tension. This is very useful to patients who are recovering from a stroke or who have just had an orthopaedic surgery carried out on them.

With pressure sensitive in-shoe pads, they can learn how weight is distributed across their body. With the help of a professional, they can learn how to shift weight across their body so that the tender or weaker parts can have very little weight placed on them.

Weight shift becomes particularly necessary when you are recovering from surgery carried out on a limb. At that stage, the limb will need to be relieved of weight as much as possible. With the sensors that monitor weight distribution, you can be guided by a therapist on how to adjust your gait and orient your body so that the recovering limb can be allowed time to heal without being stressed.

Are There Side Effects from Biofeedback Treatment?

So far, no negative side effects have been reported on the use of biofeedback. Nonetheless, it is advised that anyone who wishes to employ this therapeutic method consult with their primary healthcare provider before embarking on this treatment option.

Additionally, biofeedback does not get in the way of conventional treatment one may be receiving. Instead, it is primarily concerned with how you can teach your body to heal itself or accelerate a healing process you may going through. Once you become aware of how your body reacts or responds to certain actions or mood you can adjust those responses in your mind or change those situations or mood that to your taste so that you have a better state of health.

Biofeedback Sessions

A typical biofeedback session lasts about 60 minutes. This session may last some minutes more or less depending on the type of therapy you are undergoing. Also, there is a variation in the number of sessions needed for a treatment. It all depends on how the patient responds to the biofeedback treatment. For example, a therapy on weight-shift may take between three to seven sessions. The faster you master the technique being taught by your therapist, the less the number of sessions required.

How Biofeedback was used for the Canadian Olympic Team

People who have been formerly athletic may pick these weight-shift techniques faster than others. The Canadian Olympics team of 2009, for example were able to record better success with their secret weapon of neurofeedback that helped their athletes to stay in the winning zone and enjoy peak performance where their counterparts were beginning to feel fatigued and worn out.

Biofeedback is a blessing to modern day medicine and will open new ways to handle acquired brain injury and post operation orthopaedic issues in patients.