Laser Therapy is an extremely popular and effective modality for pain management that has been adopted by the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, Olympic teams and FIFA. It is a non-invasive technique which helps tackle inflammation as well as pain. It is an FDA cleared treatment and can be safely used as a replacement for pharmaceutical drugs.

A typical treatment session can last anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes based on the type of condition you are being treated for. The treatment will be administered directly to your skin as the light from the laser will not be able to penetrate through clothing. Also, based on the condition, your physical therapist will choose between the contact or non-contact method. The contact method allows your physical therapist to mobilize the treatment area which allows for a laser massage which will help penetrate deeper into the tissue.

The laser therapy works when photons flood the tissue that is affected which triggers excitation of the cells leading to improved circulation and pain reduction. A series of healing responses are triggered within your body. During the treatment, you will feel a soothing warm sensation which marks the beginning to an 18-24 hours process of “modulated cellular activity”.

Typically, patients should see improvement within 3-5 sessions. Research also shows that laser treatments accompanied with manual therapy and exercises are extremely effective in terms of improving pain and function.