DELOS

This Revolutionary piece of equipment, invented by Professor Dario Riva M.D (Turin, Italy), President of the International Society of Proprioception and Posture, is a technology and methodology for testing, training and rehabilitation of the control system of inner balance system and movement and for the prevention of functional deficits.

With tests of short duration and easy application which measure visual dependence, proprioception, the visual-proprioceptive system, the activation of the vestibular system and possible precautionary strategies. Many athletes and professional teams find themselves competitively advantaged thanks to this efficient proprioceptive training .

With high-frequency proprioceptive rehabilitation (Riva Method) many people, whether involved in sport or not, have regained articular stability and the control of inner balance on which both the efficiency of movements in daily life and the quality of every sporting performance depend.

This system highlights and quantifies the risk of falling in the elderly, actuating adequate preventive protocols. Moreover, it identifies and counteracts two situations responsible for osteoporosis : postural instability and instability of the spine.

PROPRIOCEPTION: Derives from latin (proprium = own) and means recieving of own signals. Our bodies proprio signals arise from sensors present in our skin, tendons, ligaments, muscles, joints and from the labyrinth.

POSTURE: is the capability of the body's segments to assume positions against the force of gravity. It is a tone e state of tension that contrasts the force of gravity (e.g like standing on our feet).

Problems with posture or with the proprioceptive system manifest in various ways, from low to high functional limitation. Maintainance of balance and posture requires information from the millions of receptor cells to be sent to the several areas of the brain for processing. The major centres for this processing are the brainstem, the cerebellum (the archio-proprioceptive system) .

The cerebellum functions as the major comparing, evaluating and integrating center for postural adjustments, locomotion, maintenance of equilibrium, perceptions of speed of body movement and other diverse reflex-related movement functions: It fine- tunes all forms of muscular activity.

THE RIVA METHOD 

The Delos System is based on the Riva Method, that is on high frequency proprioceptive reprogramming for the recovery of stability and the improvement of efficiency of movement both in athletes and in pathological situations where motor activity is highly compromised (going beyond the limits of classical physiotherapy).

Recent scientific studies show that high frequency proprioceptive reprogramming (Riva Method) highly reduces the risk of injuries and refines and improves the quality of all anti-gravity movements.

 PREVENT THE RISK OF FALLING 

Stastics from The Centre of Disease Control  and Prevention, U.S.A (January 2013) state that: Falls affect a third of those aged 65 years and over rising to over 40% in those aged 80 years and above. So 1 out of 3 adults aged 65 years and over fall every year!

• Twenty to thirty percent of people who fall suffer moderate to severe injuries such as lacerations, hip fractures, or head traumas. These injuries can make it hard to get around or live independently, and increase the risk of early death.   
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• Falls are the most common cause of traumatic brain injuries
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• Most fractures among older adults are caused by falls. The most common are fractures of the spine, hip, forearm, leg, ankle, pelvis, upper arm, and hand.
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• Many people who fall, even if they are not injured, develop a fear of falling. This fear may cause them to limit their activities, which leads to reduced mobility and loss of physical fitness, and in turn increases their actual risk of falling. 

Our modern lifestyle has brought arise to a deficit in our proprioceptive system , causing instability, weak muscles and fragile bones, increasing the risk of fall , arthrosis and even osteoporosis.

Warning signs of regression of the proprioceptive system  and consequently balance and posture can begin even 10 years before a fall, but often these signs are ignored.   The elderly are usually adviced to hold on to rails or use a walking stick or to walk less, all of which deteriorate the proprioceptive system further.

  ATHLETES

PREVENT RISK OF INJURY,  OVERTRAINING AND IMPROVE YOUR PERFORMANCE .

Can you imagine driving a Ferrari without a finely tuned electronic system and unbalanced wheels?

 It could be the best Ferrari with the best driver but if it's engine wasn't finely tuned it would not give the best performance and it would be in risk of going off  the track.

 Without a proper and balanced stimulation each system involved in postural control  (proprioceptive, visual and vestibular)can present a functional regression.

  This can happen even in top level athletes, who train many hours a day , due to the hyper-stimulation  of  one or more of the systems, which causes regression of the system less involved.  This regression tends to increase because the athletes privileges more and more the other strategies, compromising his performance.
Delos high frequency visual-proprioceptive endurance training reduces energy consumption , reprograms the  postural-proprioceptive system, monitors neuroendocrine fatigue, prevents overtraining .  It has been proved to reduce sprains, overuse syndromes and lumbar back pain by over 70%.