Turkish Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2009 , Vol 55 , Num 2

General Physical Therapy Applications for Elderly People

Rezzan Günaydın 1
1 İzmir Bozkaya Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Fizik Tedavi ve Rehabilitasyon Kliniği, İzmir

Physical agents are modalities that are used to produce a therapeutic response in tissues. The most common modalities used in clinical practice are heat, cryotherapy, and electrotherapy. Pharmacologic treatment of the pain and dysfunciton has some disadvantages particularly in the elderly. For this reason, nonpharmacologic approaches, including physical therapy modalities, should also take part in the treatment protocol of geriatric patients. The purpose of this review is to discuss the evidence related with the use of physical agents in older people and to provide suggestions for application of these modalities in older adults. 

Keywords : Elderly, physical therapy