LASER TREATMENT FOR PAIN RELIEF

As we get on in our years, we begin to develop various changes, like wrinkles in our skin and grey streaks in our hair. Despite your best efforts, you will probably have to deal with the aches and pains that come naturally with aging and eventually seek some sort of pain relief.

Before you reach for the nearest aspirin, consider laser pain treatment. Constantly taking aspirin and other medications can lead to undesirable side effects, including:

·      Gastrointestinal ulcers

·      Liver problems

·      Stomach bleeding

·      Tinnitus

Laser therapy for shoulder and other joint pains is especially popular. Back pain laser treatment also proves to be quite effective. Let’s take a closer look at lasers used in pain relief.

Low Level Laser Therapy

Low level laser therapy makes use of low frequency lasers to alter cellular function and bring about various physiological changes. Though it is alternately referred to as cold laser therapy, low level laser therapy is neither hot nor cold, and patients say the laser feels like nothing more than a flashlight shone on the skin.

Recently, cold laser therapy has been used as an effective means of losing weight, shaping body mass, and subsequently reducing circumference around the waist.

Lasers and Pain Relief

Low level laser treatment is mainly used for aches in joints and can be used for short term pain relief for a number of conditions, including:

·      Rheumatoid arthritis

·      Osteoarthritis

·      Tendinopathy

·      Acute neck pain

·      Lower back pain

There are various explanations for why laser treatment works as a pain reliever. In one instance, laser therapy is shown to block signals transmitted from injured areas to the brain, which decreases nerve sensitivity and reduces the perception of pain. Laser treatment also increases the production and release of endorphins which act as natural pain relieving chemicals within the body.

Low level laser therapy causes small arteries and lymph vessels in the body to increase in size, which allows for faster, more effective healing of edema, inflammation, and swelling. Larger lymph vessels also promote faster lymphatic drainage, which is vital to the healing process.

Laser therapy also allows for accelerated tissue repair and cell growth. The rays of the low level lasers penetrate the tissues of the body and stimulate the production centers of individual cells. This increases the availability of energy for these cells, resulting in faster intake of nutrients and rapid expulsion of waste products. This leads to faster repair of injured tissue, which subsequently means faster healing.