Why Class IV Laser Therapy is more effective than Cold Laser Therapy
Northern Nevada Chiropractic offers special packages on laser therapy and chiropractic treatments. Learn more now.
There are several classes of laser therapy that are used in chiropractic treatment varying from “Cold Laser Therapy” or “Low Light Level Therapy” to a Class IV, which emits greater than 500 milliwatts of power.
The differences in laser therapy’s ability to heal have everything to do with the amount of power emitted from the laser. The higher the power of the laser, the deeper the penetration into the tissues of the body. A higher power laser will be able to speed up healing times of deep injuries. Also, a higher power laser therapy is going to result in shorter treatment times. The Class IV laser we use at Northern Nevada Chiropractic 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 or chronic conditions.
Cold Laser Therapy
Cold Laser Therapy (or Low Level Light Therapy) was introduced into the USA in 2001 with low power levels. Since that time new scientific and clinical discoveries have led to the development of the higher power lasers, including the new Class IV laser therapy. Cold lasers are really only able to treat simple conditions because they can penetrate just 0.5 cm into the body. The only areas the cold laser can effect are related to the skin or just under the skin, and treatment times are usually very long.
Class IV Laser Therapy
Chiropractic treats joints, muscles, spine, and nerves and needs a higher-powered laser to effectively treat pain and help the body heal. The Class IV laser is able to penetrate up to 4 cm and is 24 times more powerful that a cold laser. Since it is able to penetrate so deeply into the body, the vast majority of muscles, ligaments, tendons, joints, and nerves can be treated effectively.
Laser therapy using the Class IV has a myriad of non-invasive, non-surgical, and drug-free healing effects. Laser therapy provides pain relief of acute and chronic conditions. It decreases inflammation by increasing the energy to the cell. Increased energy allows for better absorption of nutrients and the reduction of toxins. Laser therapy is especially effective to speed up recovery after a surgery or sports injury.
There are so many benefits to laser therapy as a chiropractic treatment. Our goal as chiropractors is to neurologically align the body for optimal performance. High-power laser therapy is one of the fastest, most effective modalities chiropractors currently have to treat pain and inflammation safely and non-invasively.
