Therapeutic Ultrasound Essay
Therapeutic Ultrasound – How Effective Is It in Overuse Running Injuries
Therapeutic ultrasound (US) is a process similar to conventional ultrasound, in terms of its basic functionality. During a non-therapeutic US, a device emits and receives inaudible sound waves (usually in the range of 700,000 to 3,300,000 Hz, or oscillations per second). These waves usually produce an image on-screen for a radiologist in order to determine internal body organs and functionality status; however, in therapeutic US, there is no reception of the waves for a screen. The output is increased, with the sole intention to assist in the healing of overuse injuries in athletes.
First off – what is an overuse injury? An overuse injury (OI) is a term in sports medicine, referring to a repetitive use of a particular set of muscles in such a manner that results in inflammation or fatiguing of tendons or nearby tissues. The use inferred here is what is known as “submaximal loading,” or what is otherwise known as being less than the maximal limit reachable by a particular muscle or group thereof. OI’s consist of lateral epicondylitis and medial epicondylitis, or more rudimentarily as “tennis elbow” and “golfer's elbow” respectively. Other injuries exist, such as Achilles tendinopathy (pertaining to running injuries and a disruption of the Achilles tendon in less-than-ideal training conditions) and “climber’s finger,” (a condition when a tendon pulley is overused by supporting the weight of the climber by merely one or two fingers). …show more content…
During a therapeutic ultrasound, the radiologist applies a sound-conducting gel onto the affected/injured area and then places an emitter head directly onto the skin. When the machine powers on, the patient feels a warm, tingling sensation that signifies that sound waves are affecting the particular area via muscular
Therapeutic ultrasound (US) is a process similar to conventional ultrasound, in terms of its basic functionality. During a non-therapeutic US, a device emits and receives inaudible sound waves (usually in the range of 700,000 to 3,300,000 Hz, or oscillations per second). These waves usually produce an image on-screen for a radiologist in order to determine internal body organs and functionality status; however, in therapeutic US, there is no reception of the waves for a screen. The output is increased, with the sole intention to assist in the healing of overuse injuries in athletes.
First off – what is an overuse injury? An overuse injury (OI) is a term in sports medicine, referring to a repetitive use of a particular set of muscles in such a manner that results in inflammation or fatiguing of tendons or nearby tissues. The use inferred here is what is known as “submaximal loading,” or what is otherwise known as being less than the maximal limit reachable by a particular muscle or group thereof. OI’s consist of lateral epicondylitis and medial epicondylitis, or more rudimentarily as “tennis elbow” and “golfer's elbow” respectively. Other injuries exist, such as Achilles tendinopathy (pertaining to running injuries and a disruption of the Achilles tendon in less-than-ideal training conditions) and “climber’s finger,” (a condition when a tendon pulley is overused by supporting the weight of the climber by merely one or two fingers). …show more content…
During a therapeutic ultrasound, the radiologist applies a sound-conducting gel onto the affected/injured area and then places an emitter head directly onto the skin. When the machine powers on, the patient feels a warm, tingling sensation that signifies that sound waves are affecting the particular area via muscular