More about ultrasound therapy
Therapeutic ultrasound is used in physiotherapy for deep tissue heating and other non-thermal treatments. It is important not to confuse therapeutic ultrasound with diagnostic ultrasound, which is used in diagnostic medicine to examine soft tissue pathologies and other conditions of the body’s internal organs. In physiotherapy, therapeutic ultrasound is used as part of the deep heating method, thereby achieving higher endogenous temperatures of soft tissues, which accelerate the healing of microinjuries and local blood circulation.
How does ultrasound therapy work?
Ultrasound therapy works on the principle of mechanical and thermal effect on tissue, and is very successful in the therapeutic treatment of many pathologies of the neuromuscular system. In addition to the thermal effects of therapeutic ultrasound, it also has non-thermal healing effects by delivering additional energy to the body. The process is called cavitation and means an increase in the volume of bubbles around the tissue to which therapeutic ultrasound is applied, which improves the natural healing of damaged tissue.
Ultrasound therapy is used to treat acute conditions or injuries of the musculoskeletal system, for chronic diseases such as arthrosis, arthritis, osteoarthritis, frozen shoulder syndrome or adhesive capsulitis, spondylosis, spondylolisthesis, spondylitis, bursitis, and tendinopathies or tendonitis.
Treatment of your injury with ultrasound therapy is non-invasive, with changes occurring primarily at the cellular level. You will feel a mild warming and tingling sensation in the area where the ultrasound therapy is applied. During therapy, the physiotherapist gently circles the ultrasound head, constantly moving it in a circular direction.
Who is ultrasound therapy suitable for?
Any patient who has a soft tissue injury in their body is a suitable candidate for the ultrasound therapy treatment method. Ultrasound therapies greatly improve back pain, neck garden, and irritated meniscus in the knee joint. Ultrasound therapy is also often used in the treatment of ankle ligament injuries that occur with an ankle sprain or a blow to the ankle.