Mobilisations

What are joint mobilisations?
These are gentle, painless movements of the joints performed by the Podiatrist but which you control.

They include gentle movements of the bones of the joint around each other. There are no sudden thrusts of the joints.

As this movement occurs so tension in the muscles and ligaments around the joint eases and the quality of movement is restored.

Restoration of movement leads to improved mobility whether for everyday life or for high energy activity.

Why are good quality foot and ankle movements important?
Our foot and ankle joints have developed to move freely around each other and usually in more than one direction at a time. Where this quality of movement exists we benefit by being able to walk or run on all manners of surfaces, more easily and enjoyably.

When this freedom of movement is compromised by injury, wear and tear we lose ease of movement and find ourselves less mobile. In some cases this is easily noticed because we expereince pain, or soreness in the joint or tissues around it. At other times we may notice that we cannot bend our knees as far or move our ankles quite like we used to! They feel stiff and we may feel unsteady. This can impact upon the quality of our lives, on our sporting performance or simply leave us vulnerable to falls (see research 1&2).

The causes of such lack of movement may include joints becoming less mobile through strain or aging and may lead to stiffness in the muscles and ligaments around a joint, possibly inhibiting nerve signals in the area.

Restoring movement may help reduce falls in the older person, allow the more active person both more freedom and stability in movement. Mobilising therapy helps restore these movements, improving balance and mobiity

For more details go to "What happens?"