U.S.T. used in physiotherapy

A common misconception with physiotherapy treatments is that they are limited to massage techniques and exercise prescription. This is of course not true, as the modern methods which our physiotherapy team use utilise technology to a great extent. One such method that may be used, is that of Ultrasound therapy.

Ultrasound therapy is an electrotherapy which has been used in physiotherapy practices for many years. It is mainly used for its non-thermal effect where high frequency sound waves cause vibrations and movement of cellular fluids.

What is U.S.T.?

We often have heard about ultrasound therapy but very few of us have come to know about it.

Here is a brief description about the therapy.

When we undergo an ultrasound therapy we generally use 20,000 Hz frequency of sound wave which we are unable to hear and which is beyond our hearing capacity. This frequency of sound is known as ultrasound and the therapy is popularly known as ultrasound therapy.

How safe U.S.T. is?

Ultrasound therapy is a safe and innocuous treatment technique. However there are situations when ultrasound therapy is not appropriate. Your qualified physiotherapist will ensure that it is an appropriate technique for you and discuss it with you. Certain examples where it would definitely not be used are; over body parts with cancer, in pregnant women and in children.

Frequency

The number of times a particle experiences a complete compression/rarefaction cycle in one second. The most common frequencies are 1 and 3 MHz.

Depth of penetration

The distance at which 50% of the therapeutic heat energy is dissipated. 1 MHz is used for deeper tissues, while 3 MHz is used for more superficial tissues.

Methods of U.S.T.

Two methods categorically are followed by our physicians. A direct and another is an indirect one.

The indirect one is again divided into two techniques. One is a water bag technique and another one is the water bath technique.

Does it work?

Older studies have shown that therapeutic ultrasound therapy can improve symptoms and healing in various soft tissue conditions, but the quality of the evidence is in these studies have been poor, with no control groups. More recent studies have shown that ultrasound therapy has a high likelihood of a placebo effect and that long term benefits are minimal, when compared to sham ultrasound (e.g. an ultrasound machine that is not plugged in).

A review of the literature (1) investigated the effects of therapeutic ultrasound on lower limb musculoskeletal conditions. Of the 15 studies included in the review, only one was considered of high quality. The results of this study found that none of the studies which had a placebo control group found any statistically significant benefit of ultrasound therapy for treating these conditions. This indicates that when a patient gets benefit from ultrasound, it is more probable that it is a placebo effect, rather than an inherent physiological effect.

Due to the lack of substantial evidence for significant benefits ultrasound should never be used as a stand-alone treatment. However, it may be used in conjunction with other more research-supported manual hands-on techniques (based on our physiotherapists assessment of you) and exercise. Our physiotherapists will decide the best course of treatment based on the injury or condition that you are encountering.

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