REAL TIME ULTRASOUND IMAGING (RTUS) is a tool that is being used by research driven physiotherapists as a safe and cost effective method to enhance both the assessment and treatment of patients with motor control deficits of their lumbo-pelvic 'core' muscles, (transversus abdominis, the segmental portion of lumbar multifidus, the diaphragm and the pelvic floor muscles).
The value of RTUS in a clinical setting is that it allows for real time study of these deep muscles as they contract. This allows both the patient and the physiotherapist to view the contraction as it happens, leaving little room for supposition. Consequently, RTUS can be used as both as an assessment tool and more importantly as a form of biofeedback, providing patients with knowledge of performance, in the early stages of motor learning.
