Laser therapy or laser treatment

Laser therapy is a method of treatment in which an electromagnetic beam is directed to a specific area of the body for therapeutic purposes.

Laser stands for Light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation, which means light amplification by the stimulated emission of photons.

In the laser, an active medium can be excited by current or a beam of light; as a result, the excited atoms fall back to their ground state by light emission. Under special circumstances, when the active medium is in a reverberating cavity, an increase in light emission can be achieved.
Finally, the laser beam exits the device to act on the patient.

The characteristic of the laser is the amplification of the energy that hits a very small surface area with high intensity.

What biological effects does the therapy have on tissue structures?

The laser beam acts on the cell membrane and the mitochondria, which are the energy-producing organelles of the cell.

The treatment has the following effects:

• • Increase of metabolic activities, accelerated conversion of ADP into ATP (energy supplier of the cell), promotion of electrolyte exchange between intra- and extracellular space through the cell membrane, also increased production of DNA, RNA amino acids and proteins.
  • Pain therapy increases the excitation threshold of the pain-carrying nerve endings.

• Vascular dilation due to the locally generated heat: as a result, cell metabolism and neurovegetative stimulation increase and the hydrostatic intracapillary pressure changes.
• Increase in lymphatic drainage by accelerating the sodium/potassium pump, resulting in increased absorption of interstitial fluids; in addition, the microcirculation is stimulated.
• The pronounced anti-inflammatory and stimulating effect arises from the stimulus to convert the prostaglandins (which accumulate inflammatory fluid) into prostacyclins.
• Slight change in pH inside and outside the cells.

What therapeutic effect does it have on the human body?

• analgesic, due to an increased pain threshold;
• anti-inflammatory, due to the conversion of prostaglandins into prostacyclines and the increase of microcirculation;
• biostimulating, by stimulating metabolism, which accelerates the scarring of ulcers and wounds; in addition, muscle injuries are repaired without surgical indication, because the formation of fibrous scar structure is favored;
• relaxing and relaxing, due to the heat effect and accelerated metabolism.

What are the indications and contraindications?

Laser therapy for pain, nerve, tendinitis, tendonitis, muscle, contracture, strain, tear, swelling, edema, inflammation, pain, pain, knife stabbing, osteoarthritis, old age, elderly, postoperative, physiotherapy and rehabilitation, back, lumbar, lumbar

Indications for this therapy are tendonitis, sprains, bruises, osteoarthritis, heel pain, inflammation, edema, bruising, ulcers and wounds.
The aim of laser therapy is not to “warm”, but to eliminate pain and discomfort; in addition, the cell should be given back the balance it has lost due to trauma or tissue wear.
It is not recommended for complaints that radiate to different areas of the body, such as lumboischialgia, cervicobrachialgia, back pain, diffuse pain in the spine or pain in the region between gluteal muscle and knee. In these cases, the symptoms may be caused by protrusion of the intervertebral disc or retraction or adhesions of the connective tissue structures; laser therapy cannot alleviate the symptoms here because it does not eliminate the causes.
Contraindications are pregnancy, malignant tumors and epilepsy.

How does a laser device work?

Depending on the device, the laser beams have a wavelength between 6,328 nm (helium-neon laser) and 10.6 μm (carbon dioxide laser).
Each apparatus contains the following basic components:

• An active medium, which can be solid, liquid or gaseous; the atoms of the laser medium are excited and emit the laser beam.
• A pump system, i.e. a motor that brings the atoms into excited states.
• A resonator consisting of two parallel mirrors aligned to guide the laser beam to the output.

The lasers are divided according to their power:

• Low-level laser or soft lasers based, for example, on helium neon or semiconductor diodes.
• High-level lasers or power lasers such as Yag or CO₂-Laser.

There are continuous wave lasers with continuous emission and pulsed lasers with pulsed radiation; with some devices, both types of radiation can be configured.

• Bursitis on the shoulder
• Magnetotherapy or magnetic field therapy
• Inflammation of the prostate or prostatitis