Other Conditions

When cancer affects the brain, spinal cord or nerves, you may develop neurological symptoms. These can be hugely varied so our job is to accurately assess the situation and put a plan in place to maximise your safety and physical independence.

Cancer may also be called: metastases, meningioma, tumour.

Call 0141 255 0304 to discuss potential ways we could help.

If you have been impacted by any of the long-term symptoms associated with COVID-19, rehabilitation can help. Your neurophysio will design your treatment and rehabilitation programme in line with the most up to date research on Post COVID rehabilitation.

GBS is a disease that causes inflammation of the peripheral nerves (these are the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord). This causes weakness in muscles throughout the body. The cause is unknown but it is often preceded by an infection of some kind. It can affect the arms, legs, body and the ability to breathe properly and recovery can take between 2 weeks and 2 years.

Around 80% of people make a complete recovery, however some are left with some residual weakness. Physiotherapy helps to strengthen weak muscles, stretch and mobilise stiff joints, and ensure you’re motivated to achieve your goals. We’re often asked to supplement or extend treatment after discharge from hospital and we’re great at making sure you don’t leave any small “hidden” weaknesses unaddressed.

CIDP is a disease that causes inflammation of the peripheral nerves – these are the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord – which can result in a loss of strength and sensation. Several nerves are involved and it normally affects both sides of the body in a similar way. Symptoms may include difficulty walking or using hands properly.

Physiotherapy can help maximise the efficiency of muscles that have retained their nerve supply. It can also help maintain flexibility and ensure that you reach or maintain your maximum potential.

If weakness does persist it is commonly around the ankles and a dynamic Ankle-Foot Orthoses (AFO) might help.

There are many different types of neuropathies that affect the peripheral nerves, such as GBS and CIDP (mentioned above). Other common nerve conditions may result from diabetes, exposure to certain toxins such as alcohol, poor nutrition (particularly vitamin B deficiency), and complications from diseases such as cancer or kidney failure.

Symptoms normally start with sensory problems like numbness or tingling, but can progress to causing weakness such as foot drop that typically affects balance and mobility. Physiotherapy is focused on making sure you maximise the function of muscles that still have a nerve supply, and looking at strategies to improve balance and mobility. This might be exercise targeted to improve your fitness and balance reactions, or it may look at technologies that correct foot drop or compensate for reduced sensation.

Often it can be difficult to isolate exactly why an older person is not functioning as well as they used to; there may be many factors interacting, such as old injuries, multiple illnesses or events that have knocked a person’s endurance or confidence. Even if there’s not a specific neurological diagnosis, we’re in a good position to be able to guide effective rehabilitation – we can visit people in their own homes to understand the practical difficulties they may be facing, and we’re good at managing complex problems with many contributing factors.

Cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) is an umbrella term covering a variety of abnormalities related to small blood vessels in the brain. In many cases, it seems to be a consequence of a narrowing of the smaller blood vessels that nourish brain tissue. This can reduce the amount of oxygen getting to the brain and result in damage. Symptoms may come on gradually, progress slowly and often include problems with cognition, walking and balance. SVD is also linked to strokes and dementias. Treatment will focus on getting fitter to maximise the efficiency of your heart, lungs and blood vessels, while addressing any specific mobility problems.

This is a type of spinal cord injury. It differs from most SCIs in that the cause is not traumatic but due to an internal problem with the blood supplying an area of the spinal cord. Rehabilitation will be the same as for other spinal cord injuries: We’ll begin with a thorough assessment and discussion about your goals, then develop a personalised treatment plan to help you reach an optimal level of physical function.

Cervical myelopathy results from compression of the spinal cord in the neck. Symptoms of cervical myelopathy may include problems with fine motor skills, pain or stiffness in the neck, loss of balance, and trouble walking. You should seek urgent medical attention and surgery is often indicated. Neurophysio could look at posture and stability around your neck or at helping you try to regain lost function through exercise-based treatments. We’ll begin with a thorough assessment and discussion about your goals, then develop a personalised treatment plan to help you reach an optimal level of physical function.

Transverse myelitis is a rare disease of the central nervous system involving inflammation of one level or segment of the spinal cord. The inflammation causes swelling which can block messages (nerve impulses) travelling between the nerves in the spinal cord and the rest of the body. Onset can be sudden and cause weakness and loss of sensation below the area of the spine affected. Spontaneous recovery can occur to varying degrees from around two months, with some people making very good recovery and others left with lasting disabilities. Neurophysio can support your recovery and may include exercises for muscle strength, flexibility and co-ordination. Advice on how best to manage fatigue and painful sensations can also be useful.

Spina bifida is a congenital condition that affects the development of the spine during pregnancy. There are different types and the symptoms can range from mild to severe. We assess each individual and guide best treatment accordingly.

While we are predominantly an adult service, we do have some services for children. If we can’t help, we’ll try to refer you to someone who can.

Neurological symptoms may show up as a result of a nervous system dysfunction, rather than any kind of damage or disease. We highly recommend you read more about this condition here. We have several therapists with a special interest in helping people with this potentially complex condition. Treatment is always tailored to the individual and usually involves some form for graded exercise to help you reach an optimal level of physical function.

Ataxia is a degenerative disease of the cerebellum, a part of the brain that coordinates movement. Symptoms can include slurred speech, stumbling and falling. Treatment involves a combination of medication and therapy to treat symptoms and improve quality of life. We’ll begin with a thorough assessment and discussion about your goals, then develop a personalised treatment plan to help you reach an optimal level of physical function.

Hereditary spastic paraplegia is a general term for a group of rare inherited disorders that cause weakness and stiffness in the leg muscles. Symptoms gradually get worse over time but our job as neurophysios is to keep you as fit, active and flexible as we can, for as long as possible. Treatment will involve exercise to make sure you’re making the most of what you’ve got. We’ll begin with a thorough assessment and discussion about your goals, then develop a personalised treatment plan to help you reach an optimal level of physical function.

Sometimes even the most qualified neurologists aren’t able to make a specific diagnosis. You may have some clear neurological symptoms but the cause may not be identified. This can make predicting how things will be in the future difficult. However from a neurophysio perspective, we’ll treat you exactly as we would if you came to us with a diagnosed condition: by doing a thorough assessment and designing a personalised treatment programme to target problem areas. We’d take special care to ensure we have some objective measurements in place to track any changes in presentation and we’re always happy to liaise with your GP or neurologist.

People suffering a complex traumatic injury often spend many months in hospital, require many surgeries, and may have a large array of orthopaedic, internal, skin, and neurological injuries. There have often been long periods of bed rest with significant levels of deconditioning. There are also secondary problems such as contracture development or pressure areas to contend with. On top of all that, there are the psychological effects of coping with such a sudden and life-changing event.

We have the knowledge and experience to guide rehabilitation in a gradual, progressive and manageable way. We know that establishing a good relationship is essential for the long-term commitment that is required to maximise recovery. We can help establish contracture management regimes, graded exercise and mobility programmes, and compensation strategies where necessary in order to maximise function and re-integration into society. We will always use the personal goals of the client and their loved ones to guide our treatment, from being able to transfer independently, through returning to work or sport.