A shockwave therapy session at the Padda Institute in St. Louis lasts about ten minutes, no more than once a week: a handheld applicator drives sound-wave pulses into a knotted muscle or an irritated tendon. The pulses calm pain and restart healing in tissue that has stalled.
This is one station in our physician-directed physiotherapy program. It runs only on your physician’s written order, at the strength your physician sets.
An applicator held in the hand delivers bursts of sound-wave energy to a painful tendon or a knot in a muscle. This page covers what the session is like; for what shockwave treats, see our shockwave therapy page.
The pulses calm pain and restart repair in tissue that has stopped healing on its own. It is given in a series of visits, never more than once a week.
Firm, fast tapping. It can sting for a few seconds. Every 500 pulses, your technician stops to ask for your pain number. The area may look red or lightly bruised afterward.
Each visit opens with spoken safety questions. If something has changed since last time, such as a new medicine, a new symptom or a procedure this week, the physician decides before anything starts. Say stop at any moment and it stops.
About ten minutes, no more than once a week.
Show us you have it: Tell us your plan if the spot swells up or bruises badly. If any part is unclear, ask, and we will walk through it again at your next visit.
Related reading: tennis elbow, hip bursitis.
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