For many parents, physiotherapy is associated with adults recovering from injuries, surgeries or movement problems. But physiotherapy can also play an important role in the lives of children with neurological and musculoskeletal impairments. In an exclusive interview with The Free Press Journal, Paediatric Neuro Physiotherapist Dr Aishwarya Talgeri said greater awareness among parents is now helping children receive attention at a younger age.
Dr Talgeri, who has a master’s degree in paediatric neurology and has been working in the field for six years, treats children with neurological and musculoskeletal impairments. She said paediatric physiotherapy differs considerably from treating adults, as therapy for children needs to be patient and play-based.
Small Signs Can Point To Bigger Problems
One of the biggest concerns, according to Dr Talgeri, is parents overlooking developmental milestones in the belief that a child will eventually catch up. Every child has an age range during which particular milestones are expected to develop, she says, and delays can sometimes be missed.
“If a child misses crawling, or there is a head lag, parents tend to miss these small failures and then it tends to grow into a bigger problem,” Dr Talgeri says.
She believes parents should pay attention to such signs rather than simply waiting for a child to grow out of them. While awareness has improved, delayed milestones can still go unnoticed.
Sensory and developmental conditions can present differently. Dr Talgeri says autism may be diagnosed when a child is around three or four years old. Signs such as not making eye contact or becoming disturbed by loud noises may sometimes be considered normal by parents, delaying the point at which they seek professional help.
Early Intervention Can Make A Difference
Dr Talgeri strongly advocates early intervention, particularly for neurological disorders. In her view, waiting to see whether a child catches up can allow some conditions to become more serious.
“Many of these disorders are progressive. If you don’t start the intervention quite early, it might end up in a very serious complication, especially when it’s a nerve-related disorder,” she says.
She gives the example of a child experiencing muscle tightness. Without early treatment, she says, the condition could become more serious and may eventually affect mobility or lead to respiratory problems. For this reason, she believes starting intervention early can reduce difficulties for both the child and the parents.
Parents Are More Alert Now
A positive change Dr Talgeri has observed during her years of practice is greater awareness among parents about children’s development and the services available to them.
“I feel the population now is much more aware about all these services that are provided,” she says.
However, she believes access and awareness remain weaker in rural areas. Telephysiotherapy and social media, in her view, are helping bridge some of that gap by making information about developmental signs and possible interventions more accessible.
Dr Talgeri says many of the children now brought to her are around two to three years old, which she considers a positive indication that parents are seeking help relatively early. Greater awareness about developmental milestones is encouraging families to act sooner when they notice something unusual.
Cerebral Palsy, Autism And ADHD Commonly Seen
In her practice, Dr Talgeri says cerebral palsy is among the conditions she commonly encounters in children with motor difficulties. She describes it as a congenital condition associated with an insult occurring around birth.
When it comes to sensory and developmental concerns, she says autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are among the conditions she frequently encounters.
“Cerebral palsy, autism and ADHD are the most common disorders that I usually see in the centre,” Dr Talgeri says.
Dr Talgeri also believes changing patterns of living, including children spending more time on phones, have contributed to autism. This is her professional observation and opinion based on the cases she has encountered.
Physiotherapy Is Not Always A Short-Term Fix
For Dr Talgeri, one of the biggest misconceptions surrounding paediatric physiotherapy is the expectation that treatment for six months or a year will necessarily make a child completely better.
She says paediatric physiotherapy can demand considerable patience from families, and improvements after a period of treatment do not necessarily mean therapy is over.
“It’s a process which requires a lot of patience,” Dr Talgeri says. “It could be a lifetime treatment, which the parents are not ready to believe.”
The expectation that a child will become “100% better” after six months or a year of physiotherapy is unrealistic in some cases, she says. Depending on the child’s condition, treatment and support may need to continue for much longer and can sometimes become a lifelong process.
For parents, the larger message from Dr Talgeri’s experience is simple: developmental concerns should not be dismissed merely in the hope that a child will eventually catch up. Greater awareness is already prompting parents to seek help earlier, but recognising developmental signs and understanding that paediatric physiotherapy can be a long-term process remains equally important.
