Laser Therapy for Pain Management

Laser can be helpful in a huge number of injuries and inflammatory conditions such as achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, neuroma, patella femoral pain, arthritis, muscular strain or tear, swelling/oedema, neuropathy, wound and ulcer healing…..Basically anything that needs help to heal!

Laser treatment is cumulative which means each treatment builds upon the effects of the last. For this reason we try to see you as regularly as possible to maintain and increase the effects from each treatment. The number of treatments required varies because every body is different however depending on the condition and your body’s response you may need between 2-15 sessions. Generally, we work on an initial course of 4 sessions carried out 1-2 sessions per week. Acute conditions may need fewer treatments with chronic issues potentially requiring more. Please attend each session as recommended by your clinician so you can obtain optimal effect from your laser treatment.

After an intital assessment to diagnose your issue and develop a treatment plan, we will begin your course of laser therapy. Your clinician will decide the appropriate settings for your condition and then the laser will be placed on or directed over the area of pain or injury. Once the laser is started you will most likely only be aware of the feeling of the wand moving across your skin or in the case of laser which is not in contact with your body, you may not feel anything. This can be strange as we expect to feel something (often pain!) as a method of healing. Trust us, the laser works without causing you any discomfort at all.

Your treatment will usually be anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes long (or even a little longer) depending on your issue and the treatment protocol required.

Very occasionally a body will ‘over react’ to the laser treatment and will experience a temporary increase in inflammation, usually lasting 24-48 hours. This is rare however if it does happen, please don’t worry. It’s just the way your body has responded to the treatment which indicates that the treatment has caused cellular changes and a process is underway in your area of pain. You will most likely feel better after this rebound response than you did before. If this happens, please tell your clinician and they will reduce the settings on the machine for your next treatment.

We often see results after 1-3 sessions. Remember that laser is cumulative and you’re most likely to see results as you go through your course of treatment. It’s also really important that you stick to any other elements of your treatment plan such as exercises, taping or activity modification etc to allow for the best results possible.