Author: Advatech
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Back Pain (nsLBP)
RF is best considered an adjunct within the treatment of back pain. In two large studies Gibson et al. 1985 and Sweetman et al. 1993 did not find RF alone was any better than contemporary treatments for LBP. Wagstaff et al. 1986 (6 sessions over 3 weeks 15mins per session) said RF offered significant pain…
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Knee
Osteoarthritis (OA) There are several studies showing the benefits of RF in patients with OA of the knee Alcidi et al. 2007 treated patients with OA knee with 5 x 20min sessions (500khz) over 5 days compared to TENS. The RF group reported significantly lower pain levels for a greater length of time than the…
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Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)
Treatment should only be given if the patient is not in the active phase: Hamilton et al. 1959 said RF helped both pain and mobility in patients with RA in the knees and hands (12 sessions over 4 weeks 20mins per session). However Harris 1961 showed RF could increase symptoms during the active phase/s (use…
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Tendon & Ligament
Effects of RF on connective tissues (ligaments and tendons) have been shown in many studies (not going back quite as far as temperature or blood flow). Most of the studies are for ‘chronic’ or ‘longstanding’ conditions: Costantino et al. 2005 compared 448khz RF to laser and cryotherapy in acute Achilles, patella and lateral epicondyle tendinopathy. …
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References
Abramson DI, Harris AJ, Beaconsfield P. Changes in peripheral blood flow produced by short-wave diathermy. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1957;38(6):369-76. Adair ER, Black DR. Thermoregulatory responses to RF energy absorption. Bioelectromagnetics. 2003;Suppl 6:S17-38. Alcidi L, Beneforti E, Maresca M, Santosuosso U, Zoppi M. Low power radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation for the treatment of pain due to…
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Contraindications
Absolute: Caution:
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Safe Use
To use the machine a suitable dielectric medium must be used. This is normally the cream supplied with the machine which is a consumable item. This medium insulates the metallic/ceramic applicators from the skin surface, thereby forming a capacitor with the treated tissues. The cream is necessary as the frequency of the RF is not…
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Blood Flow
Increased blood flow has been shown in many studies (going back as far as the 1940’s to the present day) from the application of RF: Kumaran (2017) looked at deep blood flow using doplar and found significant increases with Tecarpuls use. Below are the doplar images: Before treatment After Treatment As can be seen there…
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Temperature Increase
Tecarpuls RF waves induce several thermophysiological responses by the conversion of RF energy into heat energy in tissues: Rise in tissue temperature (both skin and deep) Increased tissue temperature has been demonstrated in many studies (going back as far as the 1940’s to the present day) from the application of RF: So why are we…
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What Does Tecarpuls Do?
Tecarpuls has three main effects: Increase Temperature Increase Blood Flow Decrease Pain Tecarpuls RF waves induce several thermophysiological responses by the conversion of RF energy into heat energy in tissues: (Jauchem 2008, Challis 2005, Adair & Black 2003). How much of each of these responses will depend on…