Radial Shock Wave Devices Generate Cavitation |
| |
Authors: | Nikolaus B M Császár Nicholas B Angstman Stefan Milz Christoph M Sprecher Philippe Kobel Mohamed Farhat John P Furia Christoph Schmitz |
| |
Institution: | 1 Extracorporeal Shock Wave Research Unit, Department of Anatomy II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Munich, Germany, ; 2 AO Research Institute Davos, Davos, Switzerland, ; 3 Hydraulic Machines Laboratory, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland, ; 4 SUN Orthopaedic Group, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, United States of America, ; University of Szeged, HUNGARY, |
| |
Abstract: | BackgroundConflicting reports in the literature have raised the question whether radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (rESWT) devices and vibrating massage devices have similar energy signatures and, hence, cause similar bioeffects in treated tissues.ResultsFOPH measurements demonstrated that both rESWT devices generated acoustic waves with comparable pressure and energy flux density. Furthermore, both rESWT devices generated cavitation as evidenced by high-speed imaging and caused mechanical damage on the surface of x-ray film. The vibrating massage device did not show any of these characteristics. Moreover, locomotion ability of C. elegans was statistically significantly impaired after exposure to radial extracorporeal shock waves but was unaffected after exposure of worms to the vibrating massage device.ConclusionsThe results of the present study indicate that both energy signature and bioeffects of rESWT devices are fundamentally different from those of vibrating massage devices.Clinical RelevancePrior ESWT studies have shown that tissues treated with sufficient quantities of acoustic sound waves undergo cavitation build-up, mechanotransduction, and ultimately, a biological alteration that “kick-starts” the healing response. Due to their different treatment indications and contra-indications rESWT devices cannot be equated to vibrating massage devices and should be used with due caution in clinical practice. |
| |
Keywords: | |
|
|