Shockwave Therapy

At Fit For Life NI Belfast we specialise in Shockwave Therapy.

Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy treatment is a highly effective treatment available for patients with:

Plantar fasciitis
Shoulder pain
Tennis elbow
Achilles tendonopathy
Patellar tendonopathy
Trochanteric bursitis

This can be a very successful second line treatment for patients who fail to respond to appropriate physiotherapy or other conservative treatments.

Shockwave therapy is a non-surgical treatment, and works by delivering impulses of energy, targeted to specific damaged tissues within the abnormal tendon. This increases the blood flow within the affected area, stimulating cell regeneration and healing, and decreasing local factors which can cause pain.

The effects of shockwave therapy

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1. New Blood Vessel Formation

Nutrient blood flow is necessary to start and maintain the repair processes of damaged tissue. The application of acoustic waves creates capillary microruptures in tendon and bone.

2. Reversal of Chronic Inflammation

Mast cells are one of the key components of the inflammatory process. Their activity may be increased by using pervasive acoustic waves.

3. Stimulation of Collagen Production

The production of a sufficient amount of collagen is a necessary precondition for the repair processes of the damaged myoskeletal and ligamentous structures. Shockwave therapy accelerates procollagen synthesis.

4. Dissolution of Calcified Fibroblasts

Calcium build-up is most often the result of micro-tears or other trauma to a tendon. Acoustic waves break up the existing calcifications.

5. Dispersion of Pain Mediator “Substance P”

Substance P is a neurotransmitter that mediates pain information through the C-fibers. This neuropeptide is generally associated with intense, persistent and chronic pain.

6. Release of Trigger Points

Trigger points are the principal cause of pain in the back, neck, shoulder and limbs. Delivered acoustic energy unblocks the calcium pump and thus reverses the metabolic crisis in the myofilaments and releases the trigger points.