Shockwave Therapy
How Does Shockwave Therapy Work?
Shockwave therapy uses a device that sends high-energy waves into your body, making your tissues vibrate. Here’s how it might help:
- Changing Chemicals: It might change chemicals in the tendon that cause pain, but there’s not much proof of this.
- Pain Modulation: More likely, the therapy uses a painful input to trigger the body's natural pain relief response. In other words, it uses pain to reduce pain.
- Short-term Pain Relief: It can offer quick pain relief, giving you a chance to be more active.
- Placebo Effect: Part of the benefit might come from the placebo effect (feeling better because you believe the treatment works), but this doesn’t explain everything.
Is Shockwave Therapy Effective?
- It can provide short-term pain relief and can be helpful alongside exercise.
- Studies have mixed results on its long-term benefits, but they often don’t focus on the immediate pain relief it offers.
Is Shockwave Therapy Safe?
Yes, but it shouldn’t be used if you have:
- Blood clotting disorders
- Are taking blood thinners
- Blood clots
- Cancer
- Are pregnant
- Are a growing child
- Have had cortisone treatment in the last six weeks
How Many Sessions Do You Need?
- Usually, 3-5 sessions are needed, but it depends on how your pain responds.
- Your pain during activities like hopping (for Achilles tendon issues) should be checked before and after treatment. If there’s no big improvement, more sessions might not be recommended.
Can You Exercise During Shockwave Therapy?
- Yes, you can keep running and playing sports.
- Taking advantage of the pain-free period after treatment can help you stay active.
Key Points
- There’s some evidence that it helps.
- It’s not a cure-all but can reduce pain and help you stay active.
- It should be part of a broader treatment plan that includes exercise.
Source
For more detailed information, refer to the original article from Complete Sports Care here.