Physiotherapy for Huntington Disease - Huntington Disease Patients Find Hope with Physiotherapy Huntington disease is an inherited neurological disorder caused by the degeneration of nerve cells that affects the motor, emotional, and intellectual skills of a person. There is degeneration of neurons or brain cells in certain areas of the brain that causes the disturbances to a person. It usually begins during middle adulthood and eventually progresses to death. Huntington disease occurs in all races and ethnic groups and to both sexes. Huntington disease was discovered by Dr. George S. Huntington (1850-1916) in 1872, thus the name of the illness. Symptoms may be subtle and would gradually progress depending on the individual. Early symptoms include mood swings, irritability, or depression. These are usually overlooked or misinterpreted and may disappear as the disease progresses. As their motor function is affected, patients may manifest clumsiness and they will experience imbalance and uncoordinated movements. When it worsens, patients will experience writhing movements or uncontrollable movements of their hands, feet, trunk, and face. These signs indicate chorea. Chorea came from a Greek word meaning dance because patients writhe and move uncontrollably. Other patients may exhibit a reduction or loss of movement instead of chorea. An example is when their hand writing is also affected. Huntington disease may also affect the patient's cognitive functioning. It will impair their memory, sense of judgment, and concentration. Often at times, they cannot remember simple tasks, the names of their loved ones or important milestones in their lives. They may also have bouts of depression, anger, and hostility which may range from mild to severe forms. As the disease progresses to its severe form, vital functions such as swallowing, eating, drinking, and walking will be affected which poses a great risk to the individuals. It may lead them to become more upset with their condition and will greatly affect the activities in their daily lives. They may aspirate while drinking or eating since there is already a loss of muscle control especially in the throat and face. Their speech is also slurred which makes it difficult for them to express their thoughts and feelings and be prone to miscommunications. The medical community has not found a cure for Huntington disease yet, in one way or another, patients with this disease may still alleviate the discomfort of their situation through symptomatic and supportive care. Physiotherapy aims to help the remedy balance, movement, and other musculoskeletal problems. It involves mobilization, manipulation of muscles and ligaments, and exercise to improve circulation and decrease muscle rigidity and atrophy. Early interventions are aimed to preserve the normal pattern of movements, thus promoting independence to patients to do their activities of daily living such as getting out of bed and walking. Exercises are also done to promote balance and stability reducing falls and accidents. Breathing exercises and proper positioning techniques are beneficial to reduce the risk of aspiration. Although no cure is found yet, research has shown hope for those afflicted with Huntington's disease. Patience and understanding for these people are already considered a great reward for them.

Physiotherapy Treatment Tip #1 People with injuries tend to consult medical doctors and usually demand medication to alleviate pain. Though it brings temporary relief, the palliative effects of medicine only deals with the symptoms rather than the cause of the pain and would usually have addictive side effects. Therein lays the opportunity for physiotherapy. The intake of oral medications may be avoided is there are alternative ways of dealing with pain.

Physiotherapy Treatment Tip #2 Patients who are suffering from various muscular disorders, minor or major injuries resulting to some difficulty in movements and immobility as well as other conditions associated with pain may just benefit from myotheraphy. Assortments of methods are used to deal with pain with the goal of alleviating it or achieve its total elimination. In this type of physiotherapy, massage, electrical nerve stimulation, movement exercise, acupuncture, meditation and the application of hot or cold compress are some examples of the techniques which are being employed in treating a wide range of complaints.

Physiotherapy Treatment Tip #3 Physiotherapists must also work in tandem with the parents to ensure a strong support system. Parents need to urge their kids to be more mobile. They also have to be made aware of all that is entailed in the treatment procedure. They also have to understand fully that the development in their child’s condition will greatly depend on them.