Regardless if you are an athlete training for a marathon or someone who likes to run, injuries can occur if you are not careful.

82% of runners get injured at some point in their career.

Common running injuries include:

  • Hamstring injuries;
  • Plantar fasciitis;
  • Runner’s knee;
  • Achilles tendinitis;
  • Pulled muscles;
  • And more.

Doctors, physiotherapists, chiropractors, massage therapists, and other health practitioners use surgical and non-surgical treatment methods for patients with running injuries.

Shockwave therapy is one of those non-surgical treatment methods.

Over the years, shockwave therapy has become an increasingly popular injury treatment method for treating a variety of runners-based injuries.

Paula Radcliffe, long-time marathon runner, and Steve Cram, British track and field athlete, have frequently used shockwave therapy during their careers as a treatment and preventative measure.

Shockwave therapy presents many benefits for patients. It reduces inflammation by increasing the activity of mast cells that release anti-inflammatory substances such as histamines. It also improves muscle performance by accelerating the production of collagen used to repair damaged structures and support muscle generation.

Shockwave therapy helps alleviate pain by reducing the pain signals to the central nervous system and increase the physical range of motion by removing calcium build-up.

We provide examples of how shockwave therapy can effectively treat running injuries.

Runner’s Knee

Runner’s knee is overuse of the knees where it connects with the lower end of the femur. It’s caused by trauma to the kneecap resulting in irritation to the soft tissues, worn cartilage, or strained tendons. Shockwave therapy stimulates the body’s healing process and reduces inflammation in the knee area without damaging the structure of the knee area.

Heel Spur

Heel spurs are calcium deposits that occur on the heel and can extend to the underside of the heel bone. They are closely associated with plantar fasciitis and can occur when people run or jump a lot. Shockwave therapy will penetrate the affected area and use pressurized acoustic waves to break up the calcium deposits.

Evidence 

A study conducted on 94 runners receiving shockwave therapy for a variety of lower-extremity running-related injuries discovered that 95% of runners showed significantly positive outcomes, and 79% of runners reached the targeted goal for functional outcome measures.

Shockwave therapy proves to be an effective treatment method for running injuries that provide long-term benefits. To learn more about how you can incorporate shockwave therapy to treat your patients, contact us today to request a demo by calling 1 (888) 741-SHOC(7462) or visiting https://shockwavecanada.com/.