Robot-assisted physical therapy at AIIMs soon

New Delhi: Physiotherapists at AIIMS may soon be providing robot-assisted physical therapy to patients.

The physiotherapy department of the institute is soon going to procure this new technology for the early rehabilitation of patients. This announcement was made on Sunday on the concluding day of the seventh International Conference of Physical Therapy AIIMS 2018.

Attended by more than 600 delegates from different parts of India and abroad, the two-day conference was inaugurated by Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey on Saturday.

The aim of the conference was to stimulate collaboration between clinicians and academicians. Interactive scientific programmes and hands on workshops were conducted by renowned faculties from various fields of physiotherapy.

"The inclusion of robots in ICU's is set to be a game-changer especially for early rehabilitation of both upper and lower limbs of the patients," said Dr Prabhat Ranjan, senior physiotherapist, department of neurology, AIIMS.

He said people suffering from the after-effects of strokes, spinal cord injuries, trauma and other neurological and orthopedic conditions would really benefit from the new technology and it will surely improve their physical, mental and sensory functions.

In developed countries, robotics are the latest tools in physical therapy and rehabilitation, Ranjan said.