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Novel of Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy and High-Power Laser Therapy in Musculoskeletal Pain Conditions

Areerat Suputtitada

Rehabilitation management of musculoskeletal pain conditions are challenges. Most patients developed chronic pain conditions since inadequate management during acute pain phase. Currently, extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) and Class IV lasers or high-power laser therapy are novel therapy for these conditions. Interestingly both therapies with different actions and mechanisms have same benefits on musculoskeletal pain conditions and considered as regenerative medicine therapies. The evidences of safety, efficacy and good patient compliance made both therapies to be increasing popular in the worldwide. ESWT has become one of the best investigated treatment modalities for various conditions of the musculoskeletal system such as myofascial pain syndrome, tendinopathies and osteoarthritis, etc. An optimum treatment protocol for ESWT appears to be three treatment sessions at one-week intervals, with 2000 impulses per session and the highest energy flux density that can be applied. The proposed mechanisms for the benefit of ESWT on musculoskeletal tissue include direct effects on tissue calcification, alteration of cell activity through cavitation, acoustic micro streaming, hyper vascularity and blood flow increment, alteration of cell membrane permeability and effects on nociceptors through hyper stimulation, blocking the gate control mechanism.