Heat

Increases blood flow.

Benefits of Heat:

• Warms the skin and muscle temperature and helps relax muscles (decrease muscle spasms)

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Ice

Benefits of Ice:

• Decreases swelling and helps control pain
• Slows down blood flow

Interferential Current (IFC)

IFC is a low-frequency current that is transmitted into the tissue through pads, giving the patient a feeling of pins and needles, in a massaging, comfortable way.

This machine can be used to provide pain relief in acute situations as it reduces inflammation and muscle spasms. 

We can also use this machine on a nerve block setting to help relieve nerve pain.

Benefits of IFC:

• decrease pain, swelling and muscle spasms

K-Taping

There are a few applications that we can use K-Tape for.

Neuromuscular Application:

We can both facilitate and inhibit muscles using this application. Oftentimes, we use both of these together to encourage specific muscles to work, while encouraging other muscles to relax during an exercise/movement.

Mechanical Application: 

This supports motion as well as provides tissue protection.

We can also use this application to provide structural realignment.

Neurophysiological Application:

We use this application to reduce bruising and/or swelling by providing a pathway for the edema to move more freely. We usually try to drain the edema up and away from the injury site, and towards lymph nodes.

Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES)

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) is the application of electrical stimuli to a group of muscles that have been weakened by disuse.  NMES is achieved by passing an electrical impulse from a device through electrodes placed on the skin over the targeted muscle(s).

Benefits of NMES:

• strengthening muscles
• activation of muscle
• muscle patterning

Shockwave Therapy

Shockwave therapy (also known as extracorporeal shockwave therapy) is a non-invasive treatment that involves ow energy acoustic pulses that propagate through the body using ultrasound gel as a medium.

It is used to treat conditions such as planter fasciitis, tennis elbow, shoulder calcification and tendinopathy. As well as hip and knee pain.

Shockwave therapy has been proven to accelerate tissue repair, restore mobility and provide fast pain relief.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS is an electrical stimulation of the sensory nerves.

The TENS unit can relieve pain due to:

• surgery
• phantom pain
• nerve pain
• arthritis
• low back or neck pain
• during labour

Ultrasound

This can be used for both acute and chronic conditions. This machine helps by:

 Benefits of Ultrasound:

• Increase blood flow
• Decrease inflammation
• Decrease muscle spasms
• Promote tissue healing by increasing blood flow to the area
• Can help break down scar tissue