The Pain Management Clinic
Holmfield Mills,Holdsworth Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire HX3 6SN
Contact The Clinic : 01422 64 60 66
Established in 1999
Formerly Tuel Lane Physiotherapy Clinic
Manual Therapy / Manipulation
Low Level Laser therapy
Arthritic Conditions
Laser therapy delivers pain-relief and addresses the inflammation in arthritic conditions.
With Rheumatoid arthritis, laser therapy influences small joints directly and large joints indirectly. It strengthens the antiphlogistic processes and depresses the autoimmune response. The effects in the early stages of the condition can be impressive, but with chronic conditions, although pain is eased on treatment, longer treatment courses measured in months are necessary in order to make a substantive differences to the condition. It has been reported that 6 months can be a turning point. It also appears that adding laser therapy to prescribed medication gives improved results over medication alone.
With gout, attacks can be curtailed and the symptoms reduced. Laser therapy inhibits inflammation, eases pain, reduces swelling and joint tenderness.
In cases of osteoarthritis, laser therapy may slow down the degenerative process as well as ease acute symptoms. In the case of large joints such as the hip joint, the therapeutic effects of laser are brought on by an improvement and strengthening of the surrounding tissues. Laser therapy activates the microcirculation and the metabolism, prevents oedema and triggers anti-inflammatory processes in the synovial membrane.
Tendonitis
Laser therapy is widely used to treat various types of tendonitis, both with direct application and by the use of trigger point stimulation. Infra-red laser is generally used and the depth of the tendon beneath the skin dictates the dosage and the area of inflammation the number of points to be treated at each session.
Epicondilitis
Whether tennis elbow or golf elbow, laser treatment is applicable with beneficial effects. In the acute stages, laser relieves pain, reduces swelling and activates tissue generation as part of optimising the healing process. With some chronic cases laser therapy is able to restart this healing process to bring to resolution, but in cases where this is not possible it can be used on an ongoing basis to manage inflammation and pain and used in a preventative manner. Recommended treatment for acute cases would involve direct lasering of the affected area plus any associated trigger points every 2 - 3 days for around 3 weeks.
Carpel Tunnel Syndrome
Laser therapy can be highly effective for carpel tunnel syndrome, when correctly diagnosed. In such a compression neuralgia, low level laser acts by reducing oedema and reducing or eliminating pain. If treated early, complete remission of symptoms can be achieved with laser alone.
For more long-standing conditions it is most useful as a complementary measure. If surgery has been undertaken, then laser therapy's ability to promote wound-healing and again address pain both through nociceptor suppression and endorphin release, make it an ideal therapy for optimal post-operative recovery.
Although each case will differ depending on the individual and the stage of the condition, in general treatment every 3 or 4 days would be advised to a total of approximately 10 sessions.
Lasers in Physical Therapy
Optimising soft tissue repair and providing pain relief, laser therapy is a well-used modality for those disciplines focused on physical therapy. Both acute and chronic conditions can be treated successfully. As always, accurate diagnosis is important to ensure identification of the most appropriate treatment protocols. The principles of setting wavelengths, energy density, pulsing rates and frequency of treatment are straightforward once the condition and objective is understood. Low Level Laser can work synergistically with manipulation and has fewer contraindications than ultrasound therapy - with LLLT the clinician can treat over plates, pins and patients with pacemakers. Healed tissue which has been treated with laser has been shown to have improved quality and tensile strength, thus minimising adhesions and scarring. Even pre-existing scar tissue has shown improvement after laser treatment.
Therapeutic lasers are also effectively used on trigger points in musculoskeletal treatments and can provide drug-free pain relief, being of particular aid in the treatment of arthritic conditions and neuralgic pain.
