What is the mysterious “shock wave”?

  The Achilles tendon, that is, along the back of the calf from the top to the bottom, the thick tendon above the heel. The proximal end of the Achilles tendon is the belly of the gastrocnemius and hallux valgus muscles, and its distal end ends just below the back of the heel bone (heel node), and this distal attachment point is the culprit of this problem for Liu Xiang. There are various treatment options for this type of disease. Surgical treatment is a conservative treatment for 6 to 9 months to remove the diseased tissue, repair the defect and reduce the local pressure, but it may have an impact on the athletes’ performance. If the injury is only to the Achilles tendon, local ice can be applied immediately to suppress inflammatory edema and return the athlete to competition temporarily. Alternatively, the game can be coped with by numbing the sore spot with a seal. After the game, reasonable rest is essential to improve symptoms and speed healing. There are also various means of treating Achilles tendon injuries, notably shockwave therapy.  In fact, shockwave therapy has become an extremely valuable method in professional sports. The German Olympic team used shock waves for the first time in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, and three teams used shock wave therapy at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, including the championship team, France.  Shockwave therapy is now used not only for the treatment of sports injuries, but also for a wide range of common muscle and joint disorders. The pain department is currently using shock waves to treat muscle pain, frozen shoulder, heel spurs, knee osteoarthritis, tennis elbow, etc. with good results. Shockwave has many biological effects that have been confirmed by scientific research, such as: activation of microcirculation (blood, lymph); promotion of nitric oxide release, thus diastole blood vessels, enhance metabolism, facilitate vascular regeneration, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial; promote the release of growth hormone, accelerate the growth of blood vessels, epithelial cells, conducive to collagen synthesis; enhance cell permeability; promote the release of substance P; reduce unmyelinated nerve fibers, etc. Shockwave therapy is also a non-invasive outpatient treatment that can still be applied to patients who are afraid of injections or to elderly people with more underlying diseases, but requires weekly treatment and adherence to 4 to 12 sessions.