subject: What Is Electrotherapy? [print this page] Electrotherapy is the application of electrical currents to the human body.
Physiotherapists often use electrotherapy to promote healing and reduce pain.There are many forms of electrotherapy. This article outlines some of the more common modalities which physiotherapists use.
Interferential current is the most popular from of electrical stimulation used in clinical practice in the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, and North America. It is sinusoidally modulated alternating current, produced by the linear superposition of two sine waves.
It is a series of wave packets that regularly increase and decrease in amplitude. When applied to the painful area, it is felt as a comfortable relaxing current. There is good evidence that interferential current aids to reduce pain, and to reduce edema (swelling) in tissues. It is frequently used as an adjunct to manual therapy, that is, after hands on spinal mobilization. It is also used after an acute injury such as a sprained ankle, where there is significant swelling.
Electrical muscle stimulation is another form of electrotherapy. It is used to build muscle.Electrodes are placed on the weak muscle. When the current is turned on, the muscle contracts on its own. In fact, there are advertisements on television which show people sitting in a chair wearing a cheap home version of a muscle stimulator, electrodes on the abdominal muscles, with the muscles contracting. What the advertisement fails to mention is that the stimulation is effective only if the person exercises simultaneously sitting in a chair relaxing would not build muscle! A typical use would be to put the electrodes on the inner quadriceps muscle of someone who has kneecap pain from poor tracking.
The person pushes on a leg press. With the stimulator, more motor units fire than would usually fire doing a leg press, so the muscles strengthen faster.Transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TENS) produces a current that is easy to apply. With certain settings, it influences opioid and serotonin receptors, which are natural painkillers. It is a safe current which clients can apply at home, and has been shown to reduce pain from childbirth, osteoarthritis, cancer, and whiplash.
High voltage current is also used for wound healing. The positive and negative electrodes are placed at opposite ends of the wound. The polar charge attracts molecules of opposite charge, increasing the concentration of desired cells at the appropriate stage of healing. It promotes oxygenation and wound healing of tissue, and decreases the number of bacteria in infected wounds. High voltage current helps to heal pressure sores in people with spinal cord injuries. It is also effective in reducing edema after injury. Electrotherapy is most effective when combined with other physiotherapy treatments, such as manual therapy and exercises, as part of an overall strategy of pain and wound management.
