New Neurodevelopmental Therapy Method Shows Promise

Emerging techniques are great for treating neurodeficiencies, including injuries, congenital deficiencies and other kinds of neuro-atypical. However, physical therapists who employ these principles can be tough to find. The emerging method is known as neurodevelopmental therapy, or NDT.

Basically, Neurodevelopmental Therapy is a way to look at impairments on a targeted, individual level. Pediatric physical therapists use hands-on techniques and high-tech equipment to train patients on tasks. For instance, imagine a boy who can't grab a fork might have that goal. The therapist might guide the patient through picking up the hand, reaching for the utensil and recognizing what that's like and then picking up its weight. It's baby steps, and guided by touch from the time the session begins until the task is accomplished.

A particularly important part of this Neurodevelopmental Therapy method is patient goal-setting. For kids with disabilities, Mom and Dad may set the goals. For grown-ups dealing with problems such as TBI and stroke, the goal could be about balance. Elite physical therapists who ise these methods say that each patient's perception of treatment can make all the difference.

Beyond feeling like it's working, Neurodevelopmental Therapy truly works. People treated with it need less help and fewer devices while achieving an improvement in proper positioning. Gains can be made in a variety of functions.

For kids with special needs, pediatric physical therapists can use Neurodevelopmental Therapy to help with things that will make these individuals less reliant on others. This can include learning to support oneself, climb stairs, or even learning to crawl and grasp objects. Experts believe that some improvement is possible for almost any patient, even those with severe disabilities.

The scientific research about Neurodevelopmental Therapy isn't very thorough, but the topic isn't hotly contested, either. Many of the research papers were about small groups of patients, so aren't widely applicable. But the ideas are pretty commonsense and a growing number of physical therapists for kids with special needs and other specialists are trying it.

If you need help with function and mobility, consider finding a advanced pediatric therapy salt lake city expert for a few sessions.