WHY SPIDER REHABILITATION IS SO EFFECTIVE?

Therapy of patients with movement deficits of neurogenic origin, is generally focused on the inhibition of pathological reflex of sympathetic activity and stimulate the development of proper tension distribution in body.

Reflex activity is very important for the development of muscle tone and motor skills of the patient, but the ongoing extra long perpetuates and starts blocking opportunities for developing the correct postural patterns and motor skills. It is a process taking time and needing very consistent procedure. There is a kind of competition of pathological patterns, where „a certain individual package” is performed by every patient and his physiological patterns, that in a consistent manner are shaped by the therapeutic team.

Primitive pathological patterns (persistent tonic reflexive activity) due to the location of their centers in the brain stem and subcortical nuclei are always strongly expressed and constitute a difficult barrier for therapist who create correct patterns in the form of setting or equivalent reactions that have their location in the cerebral cortex and because of that they are much „weaker”.
However, their formation is an indispensable factor in shaping the development of proper tension, and thus the formation of motor functions. Therefore, therapy must be very individual and adapted to the development stage of a given patient, because otherwise it will not bring the expected results.

COMBINATION OF THERAPEUTIC METHODS

The research integrating all of the constituent motor activities that create the correct mechanism of the postural reflex led to an innovative solution that was the combination of neurodevelopment improvement methods (Bobath, NDT) with a modern rehabilitation device called „SPIDER”. Such a combination has placed in the „fourth dimension” previously used rehabilitation methods and gave a great effect in the form of improving work efficiency and achieved results of therapy, diversifying activities, giving the patient high independence, relieving the therapist (which is very important for large patients), etc.

COMPREHENSIVE REHABILITATION

Using comprehensive procedures (accurate clinical diagnosis, therapy, plastering procedures, speech therapy, parental instruction, clinical condition monitoring, therapy planning, etc.) we give the patient, his environment and also us a sense of security and guarantee of using all options for patient. Thanks to the „SPIDER” device, we have the ability to influence many aspects of therapy, deciding about its complexity. Thanks to the application of different forces on the patient’s body, we can perform absolutely all exercises and integrate all components of each movement activity. This is extremely important at every stage of improvement. Thanks to „low” positions, we are able to shape supports, central stabilization and dissociation among others. The „high” positions enable shaping symmetry, correct postural tension distribution through selective weighting, offloading and derotation, and thus the patient adopting a dynamic vertical position. All these activities are also aimed at stimulating the labyrinth of proprioceptive feelings, muscle mass growth and stimulation of metaphyseal (growth) cartilages. Not without significance is the fact. that the patient exercising in the „Spider”, placed in often unattainable positions, has a sense of security and this factor undoubtedly improves well-being and overcoming fear and belief that he can perform activities impossible so far independently and safely. It also results in an improvement of the mental state of the patient and is an incentive to continue this form of therapy. It should also be added that „getting out” of a patient from forced positions positively influences the vegetative functions of internal organs, resulting in improved intestinal peristalsis and improvement of circulatory and respiratory capacity. All these „situations” happen during therapy at the same time, which intensifies the whole process of rehabilitation. All described issues implemented without the „Spider” are often unattainable.

MAXIMUM USE OF THE POTENTIAL

So far, no one has created such an integrated system that treats the patient interdisciplinary ensuring the maximum use of his therapeutic options. The search and twenty years of experience combined with meticulous documentation of the effects of the work created an original and not used philosophy of therapeutic treatment. The fact that we only have the patent for the „SPIDER” device means that only our team fully implements the adopted and described strategy of rehabilitation.