Dr. Mustafa Savaş Torlak, Head of the Therapy and Rehabilitation Department at the Health Services Vocational School of KTO Karatay University, won TÜBİTAK's "Excellence Seal" with his portable hydrotherapy device, which he patented and that also provides water savings. Torlak, who prepared a project to make hydrotherapy, which is widely used in physical therapy and typically applied in pools or large tank devices, more accessible and affordable, developed his own device in two years using domestic resources with the support of the Ministry of Industry and Technology's TÜBİTAK Technological Entrepreneurship Capital Support. Torlak, who developed a portable device that performs hydrotherapy, which aims to treat health problems by utilizing different properties of water such as temperature, pressure, and flow rate, using only 3 liters of water, was awarded the "Excellence Seal," a quality label given to innovative projects that score above the threshold in an international independent evaluation. Can be Used in Both Clinics and Homes Torlak told an AA reporter that the device he developed will be used in the treatment of various conditions, including muscle, joint, and skeletal pain, as well as issues such as herniated discs, neck and back pain, and disk degeneration, which arise due to congenital factors, aging, diseases, and accidents. Stating that he has been teaching hydrotherapy at the university for 8 years, Torlak explained that the project came about due to his discomfort with the high water consumption, size, and weight of existing devices. Recalling that hydrotherapy treatments are typically performed in large pools at hydrotherapy centers or with large tank devices, Torlak said: "Hydrotherapy pools or tank devices have a disadvantageous situation. In tank devices, at least 40 liters of water are used for each patient. When it's a pool, much larger amounts of water are needed. With the hydrotherapy device we developed, we managed to reduce the amount of water used to just 3 liters. This way, we not only achieved significant water savings, but also created a portable device that can be easily used in physical therapy clinics and at home." Torlak explained that the device was developed with the aim of making hydrotherapy, which is used to treat many different diseases with natural methods, more widespread and making it much easier for patients to access this treatment. Torlak pointed out that the device's ability to provide treatment with a small amount of water and its portable design are its most prominent features. "With this project, we applied for TÜBİTAK's 1512 Technological Entrepreneurship Capital Support Program. Our device was awarded the Excellence Seal. With the support of approximately 900,000 Turkish lira, we established our company. We will continue to further develop the device," he said. Source: AA
