237 First Ave. 5th Floor New York , NY 10003
Cold Laser Therapy (Low Level Laser)
Unlike high power lasers that use heat and destroy tissue, low energy lasers affect the cellular energy of the underlying tissue.
Hot lasers have a thermal effect. Cold (or) Low-Level Lasers stimulate function down to the cellular level. Low-level laser light is compressed light of a wavelength from the cold, red part of the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation.
It is different from natural light in that it is one precise color; it is coherent (it travels in a straight line), monochromatic (a single wavelength) and polarized (it concentrates its beam in a defined location or spot). These properties allow laser light to penetrate the surface of the skin with no heating effect, no damage to the skin and no known side effects.
What is Low-Level Laser Therapy?
Low-Level Laser Therapy refers to “low” energy or “low level” laser to tissue that stimulates cellular processes and thereby enhancing biochemical reactions. Studies show that LLLT increases ATP production in the mitochondria of the cell. Since more energy is now available, the cells may utilize this fuel to function or operate more efficiently.
Instead, laser light energy to the body’s cells which the cells then convert into chemical energy to promote natural healing and pain relief.
What conditions can be treated?
Low-Level Laser Therapy has been successfully used to treat many conditions such as acute and chronic pain reduction, repetitive use disorders like carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, arthritis, soft tissue strains and sprains, inflammation reduction, enhanced tissue wound healing, and cell regeneration.
Are there any side effects?
There are over thousands of published studies, and not one of them mentions any adverse side effects of diode lasers. Low-Level Lasers are safe, non-toxic and non-invasive; there has not been a recorded side effect in over 1700 publications. Some necessary common sense precautions need to be considered, such as avoiding pointing the laser in the eyes directly or pointing it over the thyroid directly.
What makes one laser different from another?
A laser can differ in its wavelength, power source or whether it is a continuous or pulsed waveform. Pulsed is technically safer and easier for the health care professional to administer. “Cold,” “Low Energy” or “Low Level” lasers are used to increase metabolic activity down to the cellular level through non-thermal reactions.
What is wavelength? And do the different wavelengths matter?
Light is measured in wavelengths and is expressed in units of nanometers(nm). Different wavelengths have different energy levels and can have various effects on tissue.
What is the difference between Lasers and LED’s (light emitting diodes)?
Lasers are monochromatic (single color wavelength), collimated (non-divergent) and coherent (wavelengths in- phase) in contrast, LED’s are neither coherent nor collimated and generate a broader band of wavelengths (multiple). The peak power output of lasers is measured in watts, while LED’s are measured in milliwatts.
There are many light emitting products on the market today, claiming to be lasers that do not meet scientifically defined attributes for being an actual laser. For example, products that use Light Emitting Diodes or LED’s as they are more commonly known, do in fact produce light. However, the light is not intense, providing very little energy and is non-coherent, similar to light produced by ordinary household light bulbs. LED’s are cheap and easy to reproduce (Pontinen 1992). These devices are NOT lasers. This misconception is in large part a by-product of marketing.
Dr. Kulla and Synergy Wellness use only the best FDA approved Laser equipment. Our current Laser Line up
How long are the treatments?
Treatments can vary in time from 10-20 minutes depending on the condition. Research studies show that there may be a dose-dependent response, so it may be more useful to treat at lower doses at multiple intervals than to address a single time with a high dose.
How long does the therapy last?
A treatment plan may vary, depending on the condition. For instance, an acute soft tissue injury or open wound may require multiple short treatments initially then the interval between treatments will lengthen as the condition improves. Somewhere between 5-15 treatments over the course of a few weeks is typical, but each case is different.
How Does Low-Level Laser Therapy Work?
Low-level lasers supply energy to the cells in the form of non-thermal photons of light. Light is transmitted through the skin’s layers and under the fat tissue at all wavelengths in the visible range. Light waves in the near infrared ranges penetrate the deepest of all light waves in the visible spectrum.
When low-level laser light waves penetrate deeply into the skin, they optimize the immune responses of our blood. This has both anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. It is a scientific fact that light transmitted to the blood has positive effects throughout the body, supplying vital oxygen and energy to every cell.
The Physiological Effects of Low-Level Laser Therapy
- Bio-stimulation
- Improved metabolism
- An increase of cell metabolism
- Improved blood circulation and vasodilation
- Analgesic effect
- Anti-inflammatory and anti-edematous effects
- Stimulation of wound healing
How Does Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) Benefit Users?
- Relieves acute and chronic pain
- Increases the speed, quality and tensile strength of tissue repair
- Increases blood supply
- Stimulates the immune system
- Stimulates nerve function
- Develops collagen and muscle tissue
- Helps generate new and healthy cells and tissue
- Promotes faster wound healing and clot formation
- Reduces inflammation
Low-level laser therapy does not require constant, ongoing treatments, as is often required with traditional chiropractic or physiotherapeutic remedies.
Is Low-Level Laser Therapy for You?
- Do you suffer pain from an old or new sports injury or accident?
- Do you suffer from repetitive stress injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome?
- Do you suffer from lower back pain?
- Do you suffer from migraine headaches?
- Do you take pain medications more than three times a week?
- Do you ever wake up in the night with pain?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, low-level laser therapy might be for you.
Cold Laser Therapy: Many acute and chronic conditions can be improved or eliminated with laser use, including:
- Pain Relief
- Wound Healing
- Arthritis
- Migraine headaches
- Lower back pain
- Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI)
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)
- Tendonitis
- Fibromyalgia
- Sprains and strains
- Tennis Elbow
- Golfer’s Elbow
- TMJ
- Soft tissue injuries
- Disc Bulges and Herniations
Non-Invasive Low-Level Laser / Cold Laser Treatment for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is one of the most fascinating and used healing advances in the treatment of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. On Feb. 11, 2002, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave Low-Level Laser (Cold Laser) clearance to be used in the non-surgical treatment and management of carpal tunnel syndrome, or “CTS.”