Imagine your body is like a car engine, and sometimes parts of the engine get worn out or damaged, causing pain and making it hard for the engine to run smoothly. Laser therapy is like shining a focused energy beam of light on those damaged parts to help them heal faster.
How Laser Therapy Works
Special Light: Laser therapy uses a special kind of laser light that you can't see, but your body can feel. This light is different from the light bulbs at home; it's more focused and powerful.
Penetrating the Skin: This special light goes through your skin and reaches the cells inside your body, kind of like how sunlight goes through a window.
Cellular Energy Boost: Inside your cells, there are tiny "power plants" called mitochondria that make energy for your body. The light from the laser gives these power plants a boost, making them work harder and produce more energy.
Healing and Repair: With more energy, your cells can repair themselves faster. This helps to fix the damaged parts of your body that are causing pain.
Reducing Pain and Swelling: The laser light also helps to reduce swelling and pain by calming down the parts of your body that are inflamed, similar to how putting ice on a bump can reduce swelling.
Benefits
Less Pain: The energy from the laser helps reduce pain by making your cells work better and produce natural painkillers. Some patients have pain reduction at the time of treatment.
Less Swelling: It helps to calm down the inflammation, so the swelling goes away. Swelling can be significantly reduced in 1 to 2 treatments.
Faster Healing: Your body can repair itself faster with the extra energy allowing you to return to full activity quicker.
When It's Used
Podiatrists use this kind of laser therapy to help with different foot and ankle problems, like:
Heel Pain: For problems like plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendonitis where the bottom of your foot hurts. It is a great alternative to steroid injections.
Tendon Pain: For issues like peroneal tendonitis and posterior tibial tendonitis where the tendons (the bands that connect muscles to bones) are swollen and painful. Laser therapy works well with kinesio taping.
Arthritis: For joint pain and swelling in the ankle and ball of the foot. Laser treatments reduce swelling and improve mobility.
Nerve Pain: For neuromas or inflamed nerves between the toes. Laser shrinks the inflammation surrounding the fired-up nerves.
What to Expect at Your Visit
Assessment: The doctor evaluates where you have pain and decides if laser therapy can help and how many treatments may be required.
Laser Session: You sit or lie down, and the doctor or assistant applies the laser light in a sweeping motion on the painful area. It doesn't hurt, and you might feel a bit of warmth. Treatment time is 5 to 10 minutes.
Multiple Sessions: Usually, you need to go for several treatments to get the best results. Most patients require five sessions on average and more treatments may be needed for chronic conditions.
In summary, class four laser therapy is an innovative way to use light to help your body heal faster and feel less pain. It's like giving your body's cells an energy boost so they can work better and fix what's hurting you.
At Lighthouse Foot and Ankle Center, we have been using laser therapy to treat heel pain, tendonitis, arthritis or nerve pain for over 10 years! Don’t suffer from foot and ankle pain! Give us a call at 207-774-0028 today to schedule an appointment.