Shockwave Therapy Vancouver
There are only a few clinics in downtown Vancouver that offer Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy (ESWT) and Burrard Physiotherapy is one of them!
What is Shockwave Therapy?
Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy (or Shockwave Therapy) was originally used in medicine in the 1980s. Initially, the high-focused energies were used to break up kidney stones and gall stones but have since been shown to be effective in the treatment of many chronic soft tissue ailments. It is a form of treatment technology that sends short-duration, high-pressure amplitude, pulses of sound energy into soft tissue. Now we offer shockwave therapy in Vancouver!
Think of a hammer and chisel mechanism; but instead of breaking apart/chipping away when you pound on the chisel it sends bursts of sound energy into the treatment area. The result of this action causes change at the cellular level, but most notably it promotes blood flow and tissue healing processes. It also helps to decrease pain by dampening the response from our pain receptors.
Results of double-blind studies have shown extracorporeal shockwave therapy is successful in treating tennis elbow, chronic tendinopathies of the knee, rotator cuff, Achilles and hamstrings as well as plantar fasciitis.
What kind of injuries can be treated with Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy?
Shockwave therapy can be used to treat a variety of injuries. At Burrard Physiotherapy, ESWT is commonly used to treat heel spurs, plantar fasciopathy, rotator cuff tendinopathy, patellar tendinopathy, tennis elbow, and medial tibial stress syndrome.
If you’ve been dealing with pain related to these injuries and have not had success or plateaued with other treatments, shockwave therapy can be an effective way to progress your results and move your rehab in the right direction.
Is Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy safe?
Yes. Shockwave therapy is a safe, effective, and non-surgical option that can be incorporated into a treatment plan to treat numerous soft tissue injuries. Most people experience some discomfort post treatment but soreness usually subsides between one to two days. Sometimes people will experience minor bruising, tingling or numbness over the treatment area.
Most healthy individuals are safe candidates for this treatment technique. It doesn’t matter whether you an athlete injured during sport, injured at work, or involved in a motor vehicle accident- if the resulting injuries have resulted in unresolved or nagging pain and discomfort, shockwave therapy may be able to help. Your therapist at Burrard Physiotherapy will assess whether shockwave therapy can be included in your treatment plan to help address your symptoms.
