Laser therapy is a highly effective and pain-free means by which to treat a wide variety of pain and inflammatory conditions.
As skin issues are linked to, and driven by inflammation, most skin conditions, including acne, wrinkles and signs of facial aging can be addressed effectively.
Treatments are quick (usually less than 20 minutes) and typically provide immediate effects, which over the course of a treatment cycle (3-15 sessions) yield cumulative and long-lasting or permanent results.
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Advantages for Patients |
We Commonly use LLLT for . . . |
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Most of us have heard of lasers for surgery or skin resurfacing, but have heard little, if anything, about therapeutic lasers.
Both types of lasers use light for their purposes. Hot lasers burn and cut the skin (operating at high frequencies with great amounts of energy), hence the surgical application. In contrast, low level laser therapy (LLLT), also known as “cold” laser, penetrates to varying levels, using lower frequencies and fewer joules (a measure of energy output) to promote healing in tissues of all depths: from organs and bones to increasingly superficial systems such as lymph, tendons, ligaments and muscles, to skin.
Over 3,500 clinical studies published worldwide, including over 120 randomized, double-blind studies have been conducted on LLLT, the type of therapeutic laser we now use in this practice.
Peer-reviewed European and American clinical scientific literature is packed with evidence of their effectiveness. They have an incredibly broad range of application. That is because of their ability to treat inflammation --the base cause of most tissue degeneration in the body-- and to regenerate cells.
Lasers are even being used in hospice care in Moscow as “an analgesic, antioxidant, desensitizing, bio-stimulating, immuno-stimulating, immuno-correcting, detoxifying, vasodilative, anti-arrythmic, antibacterial, anti-hypoxic, anti-edematous, and anti-inflammatory therapy.”
How LLLT Works
The particular LLLT laser we are using is the TerraQuant Cold Laser with Advanced Super Pulse Technology. The TerraQuant laser is used in more than 30 countries. It is the only laser to offer the unique combination of four different types of therapeutic technologies which are described below, under “Specialties of the TerraQuant.”
The Basic Science
LLLT, or cold laser, is the use of specific wavelengths of light to stimulate therapeutic effects on a cellular level. This process is known as phototherapy, or photobiomodulation: the process by which exposure to light triggers a chain of chemical reactions. Starting with the Greeks, and for centuries since, light has been used as a therapy. Think solariums, and the early recommendations to visit the seaside and take in the sun.
If you hark back to high school physics, you’ll remember that photons are the units of energy of light that are both wave-like and particle-like. Laser therapy delivers a concentrated amount of photons into the tissue, where the cells absorb them and convert them from light energy into biochemical energy.
The photons interact with the cells at the level of the mitochondria (the power house of the cell), stimulating increased production of ATP (the energy unit of the cell) by up to 500%. What’s amazing is that one photon activates one enzyme molecule… but that one enzyme molecule, in turn, can process thousands of other substrate molecules.
This is the mechanism by which a relatively small amount of energy produces significant biological effects. Through initiating a variety of biochemical processes, laser therapy optimizes cells’ ability to naturally heal themselves. The end result is pain reduction, improved healing times, decreased swelling, and increased circulation.
Specialties of The TerraQuant
The TerraQuant Cold Laser with Advanced Super Pulse Technology is the only laser to offer the unique combination of four different types of therapeutic technologies: low level super-pulsed laser, wide-based infrared radiation, red light, and a magnetic field generator. This combination helps to relieve pain, decrease inflammation, and optimize cellular conditions for natural healing. This laser:
- Stimulates cellular activity, growth, and metabolism
- Stimulates enzyme synthesis
- Increases cellular respiration (optimizes the intake of nutrition and the expulsion of waste)
- Increases the energy of the cell
- Enhances collagen synthesis
- Provides antioxidant effect
- Supports the immune system
The super-pulse technology of the TerraQuant is particularly remarkable. By “superpulsing”, the laser is able to provide a high amount of energy and photon density while maintaining a very low mean energy output. It provides a peak pulse of 25 Watts, but sustains it for only 100–200 nanoseconds, resulting in a mean power output of only 1.5 milliWatts. This peak pulse allows for short treatment times at deep levels of penetration (for accessing deep structures such as discs, joints, tendons, ligaments, and organs not accessible by other lasers), while the low mean output prevents the generation of heat.
The following is a summary of recent research findings. Search the scientific literature for studies on LLLT and its applications for your interests.
- Acute injuries -- improves swelling and edema
- Bone Fractures -- stimulates osteoblasts for bone healing
- Chronic Joint Disorders -- pain reduction and improved health status
- Immunosuppression, post-chemotherapy -- in pediatric oncology patients, post-chemo, ↑ counts of mature T-lymphocytes, T-suppressors, and lymphocytes—“general improvement without any complications or side effects”
- Ligament Injuries -- improves ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and stiffness
- Nerve Injuries -- anti-inflammatory effect on damaged spinal cord and potential role in nerve regeneration
- Peripheral Neuropathy, including diabetic and chemo-induced -- ↓ pain, ↑ sensation (study soon to be published in JAMA)
- Post-Herpetic Neuralgia -- reduction in pain intensity and distribution
- Post-Operative Vomiting -- reduced in children undergoing strabismus (eye) surgery
- Post-Radiation Skin Reactions -- shortens recovery time
- Stroke (ischemic) -- accelerates healing
- Wounds -- accelerate wound healing and tissue repair, including necrosis, venous stasis ulcers, episiotomies and perineal tears from childbirth
- Wrinkles -- increases collagen production
To determine if LLLT could help you, please ask to speak with Elizabeth. We’d be happy to discuss how to integrate laser therapy into your overall care with us.
You may also follow the links in this article to specific information on the Terraquant and on LLLT technology and research.
*Many thanks to Ginny Mimms, L. Ac., our intern, who gathered information and helped draft this article.
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