Shockwave therapy is a non-invasive treatment used mostly to treat kidney stones and in orthopedics and physical therapy. The treatment involves the use of energy pulses through a machine and gun tool. A series of low energy acoustic wave pulsations are applied directly to an injury through the skin through a gel medium. This type of treatment is offered by both chiropractors and physiotherapists.
Shockwave therapy works by breaking down adhesions, calcifications as well as tight bands on the musculature. At the same time, it increases blood flow and speeds up the regeneration of tissues.
How it Works
Shockwave therapy is today a modality that is gaining a lot of popularity in physiotherapy. It is used to treat several conditions more so those involving connective tissues like tendons and ligaments. The treatment offers physiotherapists a tool for treating chronic tendinopathy. It is recommended for the treatment of tendon conditions that don’t respond to traditional treatment.
Shockwave therapy is ideal for persons with chronic tendinopathy. This includes:
- Achilles
- Tennis elbow
- Plantar fasciitis
- Rotator cuff
- Calcific tendinitis of the shoulder
- Jumpers knee
In the first session, the physiotherapist will assess your condition to determine if you are a fit candidate for the treatment. The physiotherapist will also educate you on your condition and what can be done in addition to the shockwave treatment. The physiotherapist can recommend specific exercises, activity modification, and assess other contributing issues like poor posture and weakness/tightness of other muscle groups.
Shockwave treatment is done once a week for 3 to 6 weeks. The treatment itself may have mild discomfort but it lasts about 5 minutes. The intensity of the shockwave can be adjusted to keep you comfortable.
Treatment Modalities
Shoulder injuries are the most common injuries that are treated using shockwave therapy. Studies have shown that the majority of shockwaved muscle parts in shoulder therapy are supraspinatus, general rotator cuff, long head of biceps, and posterior capsule. In a recent study, all four muscle parts were shockwaved more than 20% of the time in every treatment session. The study concluded that joint mobilization techniques were the most common modality used together with shockwave in more than 60% of treatments. Following the joint mobilization was soft tissue work (40%) and then spinal manipulation (20%).
In some research involving shockwave therapy, the focus is on injury improvement rates after three sessions. Patients who received the treatment for three sessions had an improvement rate of up to 72%. When the treatment sessions were more than three, the success rate jumped to 91.3%. This is with an average of 5 to 6 visits. With these statistics in mind, when it comes to shockwave therapy, you need at least 5 visits so as to experience a significant improvement. It is, however, good to note that there are error rates within these statistics.
If you are searching for a physiotherapy clinic in Ajax or Pickering that offers shockwave therapy, CP Health is here for you. Our physiotherapist is happy to answer any question you may have and administer shockwave therapy in a comfortable but effective way. CP Health is a sports medicine clinic, offering physiotherapy in Ajax and Pickering. To book an appointment CALL NOW at ? (905) 239-5001
