To Your Health
April, 2010 (Vol. 04, Issue 04) |
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OK, but what does that all mean in English?
For patients, that means relief from acute and chronic pain, reduced inflammation and muscle spasms, improved range of motion and restored function.
Patients suffering from headaches, neck pain, carpal tunnel, low back pain, sports injuries, post-surgical pain and more have been helped with laser therapy.
How long does it take to work?
Some patients notice improvement after the very first treatment session; with others it may take a few treatments. The effect of laser therapy is cumulative, meaning that each successive treatment builds on previous ones. The main benefit to patients, as reported by laser therapy practitioners across the country, is that chiropractic care plans that include laser therapy produce faster and better quality clinical outcomes.
What does it feel like to get a treatment?
With very low-powered therapy lasers, you feel nothing at all. Higher-powered (Class IV) therapy lasers produce a mild, soothing, warm feeling. You may notice a tingling sensation in the treatment area as blood vessels dilate, or that muscle spasms are reducing in strength and duration. Laser therapy is a painless treatment.
How do you know it not causing cancer or other tissue damage?
There are two ways that laser light can damage tissue; if it is very concentrated (high power density) or if the photons are very high energy. Therapy lasers use power densities that are far below the levels that cause tissue damage. Ultraviolet light has very high-energy photons capable of ionizing molecules, but therapy lasers use visible and near-infrared light, which only cause molecular vibrations. You could argue that therapy laser light is safer than sunlight.
Are there any side effects?
Some patients may experience soreness in the area of treatment, as toxins are released and blood flow is restored. World experts on laser therapy have commented that therapeutic lasers have no undesirable side effects in the hands of a reasonably qualified therapist. Laser therapy is safe, painless and inexpensive compared to alternatives.
How do I prepare for a laser therapy treatment?
Since laser light does not pass through clothing, laser therapy must be delivered directly to the skin. Wear clothing that can easily reveal the treatment area or you may need to change into a gown at your chiropractor's office.
How can I get more information?
Ask your doctor! A steadily growing number of health care practitioners are offering laser therapy to their patients. If your doctor does not offer laser therapy and believes it could help your condition, they should be able to refer you to a doctor who does.
Laser Therapy for Neck Pain: Good News
A recent review of studies, results of which were published in the medical journal Lancet, concludes that low-level laser therapy is immediately effective (as little as one treatment visit) for acute neck pain and effective up to 22 weeks following multiple treatments for chronic neck pain. The study reviewed 16 previous studies and found laser therapy to be effective overall, with results comparing "favorably with other widely used therapies, and especially with pharmacological [drug] interventions, for which evidence is sparse and side-effects are common."
That's good news considering that neck pain is one of the most common and disabling conditions, accounting for substantial lost workdays, diminished productivity, and use of over-the-counter medications. Talk to your doctor for more information.
Phil Harrington, DC, CMLSO, FASLMS, is a 1996 Palmer College of Chiropractic graduate and also holds a bachelor's degree in physics.
