Aquatic Therapy for Post-Operative Patients – Dr. Chunduri

Dr. Jaideep Chunduri is a Board Certified and Fellowship trained Orthopaedic Spine Surgeon at Beacon Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.  This means unlike an orthopedic generalist, Dr. Chunduri has had specific training on spine care, including spine aquatic therapy.

In the video above, he discusses spine aquatic therapy and the importance of proper post-operative spinal care.  This type of treatment is a very useful tool in rehabilitation and timely recovery of post-operative patients.

Dr. Chunduri uses it to bridge the gap between just starting to walk after surgery and performing regular exercise movements, or what we would call “land therapy.” Generally, spine aquatic therapy begins roughly two to six weeks after a surgical procedure.  Because this type of treatment allows patients to perform movements they could not perform on land, it is a great tool for rehabilitation.

It is surprisingly common to have patients oppose any form of aqua therapy since many people never learned how to swim.  However, since Dr. Chunduri tries to keep everyone comfortable with their treatments, pool therapy is done almost exclusively in the shallow end of the pool.  The ability to swim is certainly not necessary.

Many of the movements are designed for patients to learn how to slowly strengthen their backs, and stretch out muscles in a weightless environment. The buoyancy of the water allows for a decrease in compression and sheer forces across the spine, which provides quicker rehabilitation in a safe and effective manner.  For years, Dr. Chunduri has been using pool therapy for recovering patients.  Over that time, he has seen the use of water therapy impact many patients positively and decrease their recovery times.

Please seek the experience of a professional before performing any pool exercises after surgery.  Trying to do too much after surgery can cause pain, slow recovery, or create new problems.

To learn more about aquatic therapy, Beacon’s spine center, or Dr. Chunduri, please call us at 513-354-3700.