The New Pain Treatment

Shockwave Therapy

by Dr. Mohsen Kazemi

A few years ago I heard lot about shockwave therapy for chronic conditions such as plantar fasciitis, Achilles and patellar tendinosis with amazing results in only three sessions. I decided to look into it more and found a couple of very good quality scientific papers published in American Journal of Sports Medicine, confirming the highly effectiveness of this therapy in an average of three

sessions. In October 2003, I traveled to Athens, Greece to present my research, “Sydney Olympic 2000 Taekwondo Athlete Profile” for the 7th IOC World Congress on Sports Sciences. This Congress is one of the most prestigious and attended congresses in the world. There were 900 scientists from all over the world presenting their research. The Elector Medical Systems from Switzerland had a booth there showcasing their shockwave therapy

system. I had the opportunity to experience this therapy and ask questions. The radial shockwave are high-energy acoustic waves that are transmitted through the surface of the skin and spread radially (spherically) into the body.

The body responds with increased metabolic activity around the site of the pain. This stimulates and accelerates the healing process. The shockwave therapy is used for those with chronic heel, shoulder, Achilles, knee (patellar tendon) and lateral elbow (tennis elbow) pain for more than three months with very little response to conventional therapy. The literature suggests total resolution of symptoms in most patients with three sessions of 5-10 minutes.  Marked pain relief is observed in most patients in just eight to ten days after the first treatment.  If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us by phone, email or simply drop by our office.

1. Wang et al. Shock Wave Therapy for Calcific Tendinitis of the Shoulder American Journal of Sport Medicine ( Am J Sports Med) 31: 425-430, 2002.

2. Wang C.J and Chen H.S. Shock Wave Therapy for Patients with Lateral Epicondylitis of the Elbow. (Am J Sports Med 30: 422-425, 2002).

3. Rompe et al. Shock Wave Application for Chronic Plantar Fasciitis in Running Athletes (Am J Sports Med 31: 268-275, 2002.)