Maintaining Healthy Bones with Physiotherapy

Think physiotherapy is just for muscles? Think again! Contrary to popular belief, a physiotherapist can help with a lot more than just muscle and tendon injuries. A physiotherapist can work with bones and joints too, making them a great resource for treating bone health issues. 

There are lots of different bone and joint-related conditions that physiotherapists can help with, and our team here at Sydney Pelvic Clinic is no exception. We treat a wide range of bone and joint-related conditions, including ailments such as: 

• Face-Joint Pain
• Neck pain
• Disc Injuries
• Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) Pain
• Rotator Cuff injuries
• AC Joint injuries
• Ribs & Thoracic Spine Pain
• Osteoarthritis
• Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (Runner’s Knee)
• Shin Splints
• Sprains
• …and much more! 

When it comes to bone health, many of us jump to osteopathic medicine as our course of treatment. But we’re here to let you know that physiotherapy can do wonders for bone health too, and we treat a number of bone-related conditions like the ones listed above.

There are lots of different reasons why a person may have bone health issues – and there are plenty of people out there struggling with bone health. According to Healthy Bones Australia, there are currently 1 million people living in Australia with osteoporosis. That’s a lot of people with poor bone health! 

From underlying conditions to lifestyle choices to medication side effects, there are many reasons why a person might be experiencing something poor bone health, including:

• Existing conditions such as osteoporosis and bone disease
• Low bone density conditions (issues with bone mass/bone loss)
• Growth defects, leading to weak bone formation/poor bone growth
• Vitamin D, A or K deficiency
• Calcium deficiency from poor calcium intake or absorption issues
• Bone tissue conditions
• Bone marrow conditions
• Excessive alcohol consumption 
• Previous bone trauma, eg: a broken bone or bone fracture.

So how does physiotherapy help bone health? There are many different ways a physiotherapist can work to treat bone health. Here, we’re listing three of the best ways we can help people with bone health concerns:

Physiotherapy can be particularly useful when treating the bones in the pelvic area, including the hip bone, pelvic bone and tailbone (coccyx). 

There are a number of different conditions your physiotherapist can assist with that are directly related to the bones. For example, healing from a coccyx injury or hip pain, are issues that can be treated by your pelvic physiotherapist.

In many cases, the things we do to build strong muscles will also help us build strong bones, and physiotherapy is no exception.

Weight-bearing exercises, like jogging or running, have been proven to do a lot to increase overall bone density and bone strength. Though you may not think it, the same physical activities that get your heart pumping, and make your muscles stronger, can make your bones tougher too. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, weight bearing exercise and muscle strength training exercise choices are the best for bone health. 

The physio team here at SPC can ensure you are prescribed the right physical exercises as both rehab for, and prevention of, weak and aching joints.

Finally, physiotherapy can be a useful tool as preventative care, helping you avoid future bone injuries in the first place. 

In many cases, especially with older people, weakening bones can lead to an increased risk of breaks from regular everyday activities or falls that previously weren’t a cause for concern. People living with bone health issues like osteoporosis are dealing with an increased chance of broken bones and bone fractures, making preventative care something worth looking into. With physiotherapy exercises that focus on building strength and balance, we can work on building up your muscles to prevent damage from future falls or physical activity.

Following an initial assessment, your physiotherapist will tailor an individual treatment plan, which will include evidence-based manual therapy, strengthening exercises or specific exercise rehabilitation for your bones and joints.

Those who want to look into physiotherapy to address poor bone health may be curious about what to expect. What exactly will your physiotherapist do, when treating a bone-related issue? And how is it helpful?

There are plenty of benefits to explore. Here are some of the things your physiotherapist will discuss when meeting with you about improving your bone health:

Although this may vary depending on the specific issue, we can often help you to achieve better bone alignment. Alignment issues aren’t uncommon in the pelvic area and can be the sneaky cause behind a number of issues related to the function of the pelvic organs and muscles.

When meeting with your physiotherapist, they can both check for alignment issues and create treatment plans to reduce symptoms and get your bones back in line. With time, correcting misalignment should work to improve pelvic function.

Your bones and your muscles are two peas in a pod, relying on each other to make up your form! The muscles in your body do a lot to keep the pelvic bones in your body in shape, as well as stabilise your pelvis.

In many cases where there are pelvic bone issues, treating the surrounding muscles becomes a part of the overall physiotherapy process. By strengthening the muscles with strength training exercises, you can support better overall health and stability of pelvic bones.

Another goal for many pelvic physiotherapists is to address mobility issues caused by defects in the pelvic bones. When not functioning properly, the pelvic area can lead to big mobility issues, due to the importance of the pelvis for balance and leg movement. So we will focus on improving mobility issues in these areas.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, physiotherapy is a great avenue for addressing pain issues. Pelvic pain can happen for a number of reasons, including issues related to pelvic bones and overall bone health. Your pelvic physiotherapist here at SPC is a great resource to figure out what could be causing pelvic pain and, once identified, employ techniques to reduce the symptoms.

If you’re looking to start physiotherapy as part of an overall bone health program, you’re in luck! The team at Sydney Pelvic Clinic is here to help you on your bone health journey with a tailored treatment plan specific to your bones, to get you living your strongest, healthiest life. 

If you’d like to learn more about Sydney Pelvic Clinic or to book a consultation, please click here.