Benefits of Laser Therapy After Surgery

Our philosophy at Northern Nevada Chiropractic is an alternative to invasive medicine is the best medicine. However sometimes there are cases when surgery is necessary and, in those instances, we strongly recommend patients come see us for laser therapy post-surgery to help accelerate healing.

Laser Therapy is a highly effective treatment for post-surgery recovery. Laser Therapy helps to reduce the formation of scar tissue and decrease inflammation while increasing range of motion. This results in faster recovery and the ability to begin physical therapy sooner or enhance the effectiveness of ongoing physical therapy.

The laser delivers light energy units, in the form of photons, to damaged cells. This helps aid the body’s own healing process to reduce inflammation, increase blood flow, stimulate tissue growth, and provide overall accelerated pain relief and healing. It even helps with peripheral neuropathy, which is nerve inflammation post-surgery. Laser therapy is also shown to accelerate wound healing (like a surgical entry point) because of the increased blood flow the laser stimulates.

We use a Class IV laser at Northern Nevada Chiropractic, which is a high-powered laser capable of deeper penetration into the tissues of the body than a “cold laser” or “low light level laser”. A higher power laser is able to speed up healing times of deep injuries and intricate surgeries. Also, a higher power laser therapy results in shorter treatment times. The Class IV laser we use only takes between 5 and 10 minutes per session. Lastly, a higher power laser will give a greater therapeutic effect and is more effective in treating more severe joint recoveries.

We see exceptional results with joint mobility improvement after surgery when laser therapy is used, particularly with knees, hips and shoulders. We encourage patients to come in for laser treatment as soon as they are up and about post-surgery. Some patients wait until they have pain at the scar site or their physical therapy is not moving along as fast as they would like. By coming in proactively, their rehab is accelerated and we see that their range of motion comes back better than if the laser is not used as a part of the recovery process.

Typically, post-surgical patients come in for five laser therapy visits. Depending on the surgery and your body’s response, your doctor may recommend more or less. We do offer laser therapy packages that provide a discount for multiple treatments.

If you do have to have surgery, our goal is to help you heal faster and laser therapy gives us the tool to stimulate and enhance your body’s own, natural regeneration.