Can Chiropractors Dissolve Scar Tissue

[Such_Saturation]

So apparently chiropractors use a machine like this one and claim it vibrates at a frequency which has been "found to dissolve scar tissue". True or marketing?

https://www.amazon.com/Rapid-Release-Massager-RRT-PRO2-Vibration/dp/B01DMCHIB6

 

[Luckytype]

Dissolve? Likely not. IF it works its because there is either some manual therapy behind the scenes they dont mention OR its providing enough mechanical stimulation that the body is remodeling that over time.

For those that dont know, breaking up scar tissue (meaning surgical or injury) requires mechanical intervention putting enough of a stimulus accross it that it triggers an immune response to self-remodel in the direction of the tensions. This is why injuries recover better when musculature is used in conjuntion with friction therapies and other things

 

[Such_Saturation]

Dissolve? Likely not. IF it works its because there is either some manual therapy behind the scenes they dont mention OR its providing enough mechanical stimulation that the body is remodeling that over time.

For those that dont know, breaking up scar tissue (meaning surgical or injury) requires mechanical intervention putting enough of a stimulus accross it that it triggers an immune response to self-remodel in the direction of the tensions. This is why injuries recover better when musculature is used in conjuntion with friction therapies and other things

What if it really does resonate with the stiffness of the scar and puts the energy into it? Or maybe not actual scars, but just excess collagen in the body.

 

[Luckytype]

I could see that being plausible...maybe. Even if the 'vibration' was enough that it lessened pain receptors so that movement was better and this was what triggered remodeling. So there are modalities like ultrasound used in alot of athletic training rooms for both muscular and other tissues - you have the idea in that it adds energy, and as a byproduct the area gets warm. The arguement is that the sound helps "move" things as well.

Warmth obviously helps with tissue pliability and can lessen pain and even that could help when the time to move(or small joints or tissue transitions). There isnt a ton of research that i can recall on it but tons of PT clinics and AT rooms have these and use them.

With this little guy(holy chit just saw the price tag) i imagine it like a microjackhammer. It adds movement in concentrated areas.

The way a lot of scar tissue forms ESP after an injury or chronic inflammation condition is in a really disorganized pattern, really just a mess. (Think of horrible mig welding hackjob vs a professional row of dimes tig weld job) So a lot of times its the fact that its never linear and is a crisscrossed hackjob by the body in an effort to heal as fast as possible that causes additional inflammation then pain which leads to dysfunction and sometimes becomes cyclic. Once tissues lay the right way and have the ability to move as functional units does the dysfunction and discomfort clear up.

Whats your though with this here? Scalp?

 

[yerrag]

So apparently chiropractors use a machine like this one and claim it vibrates at a frequency which has been "found to dissolve scar tissue". True or marketing?

https://www.amazon.com/Rapid-Release-Massager-RRT-PRO2-Vibration/dp/B01DMCHIB6

Is this actually a tool of the trade of chiropractors? I thought chiropractors only focus on the spinal cord, making adjustments to correct subluxation. This tool doesn't affect the spinal cord at all. Anyway, interesting piece of tool. I'd be interested to test one out for my keloids.

 

[Luckytype]

Chiropractor - chiro - hand.

They are practitioners/clinicians who traditionally use their hands as their tools. Depending on the school, many chiropractors can treat many things beyond the spine/pelvis but alot of the "business" is focused around the neck spine and pelvis and making things pop or crack eventhough its compliance after treatment that often yields overall better results..I digress

 

[Dan W]

True or marketing?

I suspect it's marketing itself to the massage/chiropractic world where there's been a lot of talk of physically breaking up "adhesions" and "scar tissue", rather than anything on the bioenergetics level. There's a big marketing trend on that (FasciaBlaster® and such).

 

[Such_Saturation]

I have seen chiropractors use tools from outside of chiropratics in the past. I’m wondering if it’s any good...

 

[Such_Saturation]

100% marketing or just 99%

 

[Wagner83]

For some reason it reminds me of shockwave therapy (ultrasound) for peyronie's.

 

[Luckytype]

As far as musculoskeletal adhesions, trigger point therapy actually uses modalitys kinda similar to these.

Fascia based adhesions when treated with the appropriate manual therapies can clear upband restore function readily. This fascia blaster thing is "marketing" per se but the idea of force into and across the adhesions isnwhat actually gives resolve. Kinda a crappy way to sell the correct therapy, if you will..

 

[Luckytype]

I suspect it's marketing itself to the massage/chiropractic world where there's been a lot of talk of physically breaking up "adhesions" and "scar tissue", rather than anything on the bioenergetics level. There's a big marketing trend on that (FasciaBlaster® and such).

This is because of the lack of ability to concentrate energy for periods of time and even with efficiency techniques it becomes physically fatiguing if you are a manual therapist

While there may be a portion that mean well, this unfortunately opens the gates for a ton of garbage to flood the market

 

[Dan W]

Yeah, I didn't mean to imply anything negative about a lot of the therapies. I've had really good luck on myself and others using trigger point type techniques, even if the model behind it is controversial. I've just noticed that beat-the-"bad stuff"-out-of-your-fascia products are getting trendy.

 

[noordinary]

I suspect it's marketing itself to the massage/chiropractic world where there's been a lot of talk of physically breaking up "adhesions" and "scar tissue", rather than anything on the bioenergetics level. There's a big marketing trend on that (FasciaBlaster® and such).

I think mechanical applications only work by triggering biochemical changes.
@Such_Saturation you could as well look into carboxytherapy (google carboxytherapy for stretch marks) it is subcutaneous application of pure CO2 gas using needle into scar tissue. The machine for carboxytherapy is less expansive (about 1000$)

 

[Such_Saturation]

Interesting, thanks. What’s this trigger point thing?

 

[Dan W]

What’s this trigger point thing?

I really like Paul Ingraham's writing about it because he focuses on the practical applications while still looking critically at a lot of the theories behind it:
The Science of Stubborn Aches, Pains & Injuries

 

[Dan W]

Here's his trigger-point-specific page, but you have to pay for the full ebook of it.

 

[Luckytype]

Interesting, thanks. What’s this trigger point thing?

So in a nutshell trigger point therapy is focused on realigning tissue that may get "bound up" due to disuse, chronic use, tissue direction change or transition (think like for example where a glute maximus meets a hamstring) or any other factors.

Trigger points are many times caused by just fascia(the stuff that wraps all soft tissues) getting irritated. They can also be in isolated sections of muscle fibers, bellies or any functional unit.

They can cause some serious annoyance and lead to serious chronic dysfunction. Seen often in any athletic population.

I had a long time issue with one high up in my adductor near my crotch, have had them in bicep and tricep bellies and in my calves.

The super basic idea is finding them with finger or knuckle or a tool(ive used a sharpie often) then applying some pressure for a few to several seconds, then work the areas next to it the same way. Do this for a few minutes worth of time then you can begin to add elongation to the muscle group or area, basically working it through its range of motion while applying the same inward pressure. You are effectively holding it down in place then moving the muscle or joint to get tension across the affected area. Over a period of days and weeks you evoke a mild inflammatory response and the body remodels to that.

 

[Lurker]

I would try serrapeptase which actually will dissolve scar tissue and find some less expensive to tickle your fancy.

 

[Osteopath]

I’m a manual therapist who works in a PT clinic and I focus very much on soft tissue modalities. I use an even more expensive unit called a DMS (Deep Muscle Stimulator) as well as IASTM tools. I treat fascia lines and underlying fibrosis. Myofascial release is a bit more aggressive/intrusive due to treating fascia profunda.