Shockwave Therapy Carrollton, TX
- Mark III Ultra ESWT
- No Needles, No Surgery
- Short 8–12 Visit Plans
Shockwave therapy in Carrollton, TX, is one of the treatments we use here at Dallas Spine Center. Dr. Hoa Nguyen uses this special machine called the Mark III Ultra to fix painful body parts, like tight muscles and strong cords called tendons. This is highly recommended if you have hurt shoulders, sore knees, and painful backs that have been bothering you for way too long.
What is Shockwave Therapy?
Our shockwave therapy involves sending targeted sound waves into your painful body parts. It uses gentle waves through your skin so it can reach the deep spot that’s been hurting you.
Dr. Nguyen explains it this way:
“We know that the body heals itself. The body only heals itself at an acute stage of injuries. When a patient comes to me, they are in a chronic stage of injuries. What we do with that is we use shockwave therapy to produce a sound wave penetrating the body to the chronic problem area like a frozen shoulder. Shockwave therapy induces a microtrauma to the area, the body will respond through a biologically feedback. The body perceives that as acute injuries turning that chronic issues into an acute issue and now the body will heal that area.”
Dr. Hoa Nguyen, D.C.To put it simply, the sound wave tricks your body into fixing an old injury that stopped getting better. It brings blood to the area, sends in helper cells to fix the damage, and builds new tissue. It also breaks up stiff inner scars or tiny hard bumps that get in the way of moving. This is the reason we recommend it to patients with stubborn injuries that won’t heal on their own.
How Dr. Nguyen Performs Shockwave Therapy at Dallas Spine Center
Our chiropractor uses a machine made by Shockwave Center of America, called the Mark III Ultra. It’s built to fix painful tendons and ligaments in your shoulder, knee, and back.
Dr. Nguyen does things a little differently than other doctors because he doesn’t just shock the spot that hurts. The first thing that he does is test how your muscles work to find out what’s actually broken. For instance, with a hurt shoulder, he will assess if the problem is in the joint itself or in the muscles attached to it. If he finds that exact muscle or cord causing you trouble, he gently presses on it to find the spots that feel extra sore.
“We will find a tender spot when we apply shockwave to that area and find a tender area on the attachment of certain muscle,” Dr. Nguyen says. “We will test that out with shockwave. The patient will feel more discomfort over an injured muscle or ligament attachment. That is where the problem area is. We will find two or three of those areas and we treat those areas.”
That brief pain you feel during the test is actually a helpful clue for our chiropractor. It gives our chiropractor a clue about exactly where the ache is. The majority of our patients have two or three main spots that need help during a visit. But this therapy heals the spots that are stuck and hurt.
What It Feels Like During Your Shockwave Session
- 1Muscle Testing: Dr. Nguyen will test your muscles by hand to figure out which exact spot is causing your pain.
- 2Finding the Spot: He presses around to find sore areas and uses quick sound waves to ensure he has found the right spot.
- 3The Treatment: Once he knows where to go, he uses the machine on those two or three spots with gentle pulses.
- 4How It Feels: Over healthy skin, you hardly feel anything. But if Dr. Nguyen applies it to your problematic area, you feel a bit tender. Our chiropractor changes the power level so it never hurts too much.
- 5Finishing UP: Most of our patients feel better right when the treatment ends.
Sessions are fast. They can last between 15 and 20 minutes once the spots are found. Dr. Nguyen says that many patients tell him their pain drops and they feel 10 to 50 percent stronger after just one visit. However, these are personal stories and not promises. Your sessions might be shorter or longer, depending on how bad your injury is.
Who’s the Ideal Candidate and Who Must Skip this Therapy?
This treatment is ideal if you have old injuries in your muscles and joints that failed to get better with ice, rest, or stretching. It also works well if you have stiff shoulders, painful knees, sore feet, and lingering back pain.
But you must not get this treatment if any of these apply to you:
- You got a cortisone shot in the last 30 days.
- You have a device in your chest to help your heart beat.
- You have a malignant tumor.
- You have a skin infection right where it hurts.
- You’re pregnant.
- You’re under 17 years old.
- You bleed very easily or are suffering from a blood disorder.
- You’re suffering from a serious infection.
- You have metal electrical gadgets in your body.
- You get dangerous blood clots.
If you have one or some of these conditions, you must tell Dr. Nguyen during your consultation with him so he can find a way to help you.
Conditions We Treat Most Often with Shockwave Therapy
Dr. Nguyen uses shockwave therapy mostly for the following:
- Stiff shoulders and shoulder pain (it’s the most common complaint that we treat here with this treatment)
- Knee pain and hurt knee tendons
- Back pain
- Leg and lower back pain caused by your pinched nerves and tight muscles
- Long-lasting pain in elbows, hips, and other joints.
What to Expect and How Many Sessions You’ll Need
After your first visit, you’ll feel better and not worse. You should experience pain relief after treatment. It’s normal to feel slightly sore the next day as your body starts fixing itself. But that soreness goes away quickly.
The number of visits will depend on how bad your injury is and how long you’ve been suffering from it. Dr. Nguyen usually recommends between 8 and 12 visits for shoulder or knee problems. He will space them a few days or a week apart. The machine starts at a more powerful level early on and gets turned down as you heal.
You don’t need to do anything hard after your visit. But you need to drink a lot of water. Don’t push your body too hard for two days, and do any of the exercises that our chiropractor gives you. Remember that the main goal here is to build your strength back up and not just to stop your pain for a little while.
What Patients are Telling Us About Their Experience
Many of our patients say that they can move better and feel less pain after their first visit. Some even say that they can raise their arm higher or walk on a hurt knee without wincing. These are their experiences and not yours. Everyone’s healing time is different.
Dr. Nguyen will explain to you which muscle is hurting and why. Understanding the problem makes your discomfort during the treatment a lot easier to handle.
One surprise for many of our patients is that the treatment starts to feel better while it’s happening. “It should start with high intensity pain and decrease pain as the treatment progresses,” Dr. Nguyen says. This change means that your body is already starting to heal.
Why Shockwave Therapy Should Be Considered
Dr. Nguyen has been helping people with painful bones and hurt muscles for more than two decades, including people hurt in accidents or living with chronic pain. He combines shockwaves with other smart care, like gentle back stretches and exercise. In that way, you get the exact care that you need.
This is your great next step if you’ve been living with shoulder or knee pain for a lot longer now.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does shockwave therapy hurt?
No, shockwave therapy doesn’t hurt at all. You may feel a little soreness right on the treated area. But Dr. Nugyen will adjust the machine so it doesn’t get uncomfortable. Most patients say it’s easy to handle. The sore feeling goes away as your treatment works.
How soon will I feel results?
Many people feel stronger and have less pain right after their first visit. But everyone heals differently. The majority of our patients feel completely better after 8 to 12 visits.
Can I get shockwave therapy if I had a cortisone shot recently?
No. You must wait 30 days after you had a cortisone shot.
What’s the difference between shockwave therapy for the shoulder versus the back?
It works the same way, as they both send waves to the spots where muscles attach to the bone.
Will I need to do anything special after treatment?
You must stay hydrated and rest the treated area for a day or two. You should also perform easy exercises that Dr. Nugyen has recommended to make you stronger. You should feel better after every visit, instead of feeling worse.
Schedule Your Consultation
If you’re living with a stiff shoulder, a bad knee or a muscle injury that just doesn’t go away, call us at 469-986-9171 to see if shockwave therapy can help your condition. Our chiropractor will check your painful spots, explain how he can fix your condition, and give you a candid plan. You can find us at 3730 N Josey Lane, Suite 122, in Carrollton.