Arthritis is one of the most common musculoskeletal diseases. The term arthritis is a “catch-all” category that includes more than 100 different conditions. The best known are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, but they also include gouty arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and even fibromyalgia. Today, the soft laser is one of the most effective physical therapy modalities for symptomatic relief.
It follows from the above that in some forms of arthritis, arthritis is a consequence of the underlying disease. In gout, rheumatism, and lupus, the most important thing is to treat the underlying disease.
The main symptoms of arthritis are pain, joint stiffness and swelling. Soft laser treatment can reduce and eliminate inflammation. Since most anti-inflammatory drugs cause a number of side effects, it is important to know that soft laser is a medicine and therefore has no side effects. At the very least, it is expected to reduce the need for anti-inflammatory drugs.
Soft laser efficacy studies
The therapeutic effects of lasers are now widely studied. Several research groups have demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects and effectiveness in the treatment of arthritis.
Molina et al. divided patients with arthritis into two groups. One received only a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, while the others received soft laser treatment along with the drug. The group that received both the laser and the medication showed better healing results.
Soriano treated 938 patients with osteoarthritis with soft laser and found that soft laser was more effective in the acute (fresh inflammation) stage than in the chronic stage.
Antipa and colleagues also found that the group that received both medication and a soft laser had better outcomes than those treated with anti-inflammatory therapy alone.
Glazewski treated 224 patients with rheumatoid arthritis with soft laser therapy, which reduced the patients’ need for anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers.
Soft laser treatment of arthritis
Effective soft lasers have only become available for home use in the last 10 years or so. Previously, only clinical applications were possible.
Low-energy, so-called soft laser devices designed for home use are designed to do no “harm”. But it’s important to know how to use them, because if you don’t use them properly, you may not get the results you want.
For skin treatment, buy a device that emits a beam with a wavelength of 808 nanometres. Attention! The 650-660nm devices are cheaper but are ineffective on joints (knees, wrists, hips, spine, shoulders, elbows).
[message title=”B-Cure Classic Soft Laser” title_color=”#ffffff” title_bg=”#1e73be” title_icon=”” content_color=”#000000″ content_bg=”#ededed” id=””]
- Laser Power Class 1
- 808 nanometer laser beam
- PW (pulsed) laser
- 250mW power
- 6 minutes / 5 Joule
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[message title=”Personal Laser L400 Soft Laser” title_color=”#ffffff” title_bg=”#1e73be” title_icon=”” content_color=”#000000″ content_bg=”#ededed” id=””]
- Laser power class 3
- 808 nanometer laser beam
- CW (continuous wave) laser
- 400 mW power
- 12.5 sec / 5 Joule
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Practical advice on treating arthritis with soft lasers
The idea of soft laser treatment is to inject a specific amount of energy into the diseased area. The amount required depends on the disease but is usually between 5 and 7 Joules. The time it takes to deliver this much energy depends on the laser power delivered by the device. A lower-intensity device will deliver the same amount of energy with a longer treatment time.
The laser only works at a certain dose! If you give less than the recommended time, it is not enough to start the beneficial effects, and longer than the recommended time is not good for the cells, it stops the healing. In other words, it is not good to arbitrarily double the treatment time, because this will not improve the effect! Only treat as long as recommended.
It’s also important to check the area of the treatment head. The smaller the treatment head, the more time you will need because you will have to treat more points. If the arthritis is affecting a small joint, such as a knuckle, you may need as little as 5-8 minutes of treatment once. However, if you are treating your knee, for example, you will need to treat it from several directions (3-4 points).
The laser should be delivered directly to the skin. The laser light cannot pass through clothing or bandages, so the treatment will be ineffective!
Soft laser treatment is usually undetectable. The effects take place deep inside the cells and are not immediate. Although the pain may be reduced after the first treatment, it is more likely to take 10-12 days for symptoms to subside, while several treatments a day are needed. Only stop treatment once full recovery has been achieved.
[message title=”EnergyLaser L500 Pro Bluetooth Soft Laser” title_color=”#ffffff” title_bg=”#1e73be” title_icon=”” content_color=”#000000″ content_bg=”#ededed” id=””]
- Laser power class 3
- 808 nanometer laser beam
- CW (continuous wave) laser
- 500 mW power
- 10 sec / 5 Joule
- Android app – Bluetooth connection
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Soft laser treatment points for arthritis
Each tissue, joint, and pain has its own irradiation time. That means it makes a difference how long you keep the device in place. Some tissues are more sensitive and need less energy to “get by”, while others need longer exposure (more energy input). In the instructions for the use of the devices, you will find detailed treatment suggestions – with treatment times, intensities, etc. appropriate to the disease.
For pains of arthritis origin, start treatments as soon as possible after the onset of symptoms. Apply 5-7 Joule of energy for each treatment point. For example, if a device has an energy of 1 Joule/cm2, it takes 5 minutes of treatment to apply 5 Joules (more detail on the importance of energy output). In the case of fresh inflammation, treat the area every hour. For chronic complaints, 2-3 treatments are sufficient.
The following pictures and videos show the points where you need to treat (the B-Cure soft laser device is shown in the pictures).
Shoulder arthritis
The area of the shoulder joint and the outside of the upper arm.
Joint pain in the fingers and toes, rheumatoid arthritis
Right and left side of the finger (on each finger, one at a time), the crease between palm and fingers
Knee arthritis, knee pain, knee injury, after knee surgery
Back of the knee, the bend, right and left sides of the knee (possibly below the kneecap)