Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation: New Paradigms and Challenges

Continuous development of various therapeutic and rehabilitation approaches requires continuous determination of new paradigms in order to provide a stable framework for dealing with illness and disability. Paradigms are defined as a set of theories, beliefs, values, techniques, skills etc. that is prone to be transformed and/or mended [1]. So, since nowadays we are witnessing major changes in the world of science and medicine, some paradigms should certainly be considered.One of them is the principle of interdisciplinarity which is based on complex connection of different knowledge from the field of biomedical, social, technical and other sciences, but also from the field of art. In today's world, where specific insights are grouped into separate clusters, the principle of interdisciplinary communication is necessary, especially in the area of understanding and maintaining optimal psychophysical functioning in humans. Particularly, the process of interdisciplinarity is increasingly present in the field of physiotherapy and rehabilitation because it needs to include knowledge from various disciplines like physical medicine, neuroscience, anatomy, physiology, psychology, psychiatry, bio mechanism, assistive technology, psychoneuroimmunology, geriatrics etc., depending on the scope of the intervention.