Physical Therapy At Our Office

Electrical Muscle Stimulation
Often referred to as "muscle stim," the therapy involves low levels of electrical impulses delivered to the injured, painful tissues to reduce pain and speed healing. Often described by patients as a pleasant, "tingling" sensation, or "electrical massage," these impulses stimulate the body to release natural pain relievers, called endorphins. These endorphins reduce pain and inflammation, thereby promoting faster healing of the injured tissues. This therapy is often used to treat acute or chronic pain, as well as strains or sprains of the muscles, joints, and soft tissues of the spine and extremities.

Interferential Electro-Therapy
Interferential Electro-Therapy is a therapeutic treatment to aid in the relief of pain and the promotion of soft tissue healing.

Tiny amounts of electrical impulses are induced into the tissues in the vicinity of the injury. Where these waves intersect below the surface of the skin, a low-frequency stimulation is created. This prompts the body to secrete endorphins and other natural pain killers to help relieve pain.

Most patients find Interferential Electro-Therapy to be extremely beneficial and describe the treatment as a faint "pins and needles" sensation.

Interferential Electro-Therapy is most often used for pain relief and to aid in reducing the swelling of soft tissues. Ligament sprains, muscle strains and spasms often respond to this treatment, helping to reduce atrophy and increase blood circulation.

Microcurrent Therapy
Microcurrent Therapy uses extremely small amounts of electrical current (millionths of an amp) to help relieve pain and heal soft tissues of the body. Injury to the body disrupts its normal electrical activity. Microcurrent Therapy produces electrical signals like those naturally occurring when the body is repairing damaged tissues. By applying similar electrical currents, the healing process is enhanced. The electrical current used in Microcurrent Therapy is so small that it is rarely felt. However, the water-moistened electrodes or gel used to conduct the current may seem cool when first applied.

Microcurrent Therapy is often recommended in cases involving soft tissue inflammation or muscle spasm. Since Microcurrent Therapy mimics the body's electrical fields it is helpful in relieving pain and stimulation the healing of soft tissues. Microcurrent Therapy can help speed the healing process, reduce swelling and inflammation, masks acute and chronic pain, releases muscle trigger points, and improves, soft tissue regeneration.

Ultrasound
This treatment should not be confused with diagnostic ultrasound, often used in prenatal screening, but is instead a therapeutic procedure that utilizes sound waves to treat injured muscles, joints, and soft tissues. The sound waves vibrate the tissues back and forth, creating a deep, micro-massage effect. In the case of a recent injury, this helps to decrease scar tissue and adhesion formation, which would otherwise interfere with the body's healing process. The sound waves also decrease inflammation by destroying unwanted inflammatory cells. The sound waves also accelerate healing by stimulating the activity of the cells responsible for cellular and tissue repair. In chronic cases, special settings are used to create a deep-heating effect, heating the tissues far below the skin's surface. This heat, along with the vibrations that are caused by the ultrasound, help to "melt away" the muscle spasms and "knots" felt in our muscles.