SPORT MEDICINE

Use of an Evolution in Tecartherapy for Muscle Improvement and Treatment of Sports Injuries

Abstract: Radiofrequency assisted medical devices have evolved dramatically in the last two decades, such that a simple set of fairly basic tools has now become an extremely sophisticated option. Most importantly, a physician’s understanding of these devices can maximize treatment results. Diathermy, meaning “through heat,” consists in the application of short-wave electromagnetic energy. The factor that determines whether a diathermy machine will increase body temperature is the amount of energy absorbed by the tissue. The development of this device allows selecting the frequency to apply between 0.8 1 and 1.2 MHz; the application of high energy power, through several channels and increasing the treatment area, allows taking the radiofrequency to another level in rehabilitation sports medicine. RF is applied to the target area by a handpiece that delivers energy, while a grounding pad is placed elsewhere on the body for the energy to pass through. The entry of RF into the body at the site of contact with the active electrode leads to heating a volume of tissue. This ability to heat a volume of tissue in a non-invasive way produces the immediate contraction of collagen, and the delayed synthesis of collagen, by thermal induction fibroblasts, and the production of epithelial, vascular growth factors. RF has a firm, safe and increasingly popular place in the therapeutic arsenal of sports medicine.

Evaluation of the Effects of Tecar Therapy on Acute Symptoms of Athletes Following Lateral Ankle Ligament Sprain

Abstract: Background and Objectives: Tecar therapy as a modality has been considered due to its reported effects on reducing pain and swelling and finally increasing range of motion and improving function. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of tecar therapy on acute symptoms of athletes following lateral ankle ligament sprain in the treatment and control groups between pretreatment periods, after 6 sessions, and after 12 sessions of treatment. Methods: In this study, 23 patients in each group including athletes with an acute lateral ankle ligament sprain in the acute stage in Tehran. The participant of this study were divided into 2 groups of control with normal treatment and the second group with normal treatment + tecar treatment. Participants were homogenized in terms of age, height, weight, and level of exercise. To evaluate the pain intensity of patients in the two groups and to measure the swelling of the ankle joint, a tape measure (mm) was used. A goniometer was used to measure the degree of ankle motions. The Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) questionnaire was also used to collect data. Results: Statistical analyzes showed that the mean numerical visual criterion of pain in both groups was significantly lower after 6 and 12 sessions of treatment (P<0.001). The results of the analysis of variance showed that the mean swelling in the treatment group and in the control group after 6 and 12 sessions of treatment (P<0.001) was significantly lower than the mean swelling before treatment. Also, the mean swelling after 12 sessions of treatment was significantly lower than after 6 sessions of treatment (P<0.001). Regarding daily life activities and the percentage of athlete satisfaction in performing the activity, the test results showed that the athlete’s scores after 6 and 12 sessions of treatment (P<0.001) were significantly higher than before treatment. Also, their scores after 12 sessions of treatment were significantly higher than 6 sessions (P<0.001). The performance scores in both groups after 6 and 12 sessions of treatment (P<0.001) were significantly higher than performance scores before treatment. Also, the performance scores after 12 sessions of treatment were significantly higher than 6 sessions of treatment (P<0.001). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that tecar therapy in patients with lateral ligament sprain of the ankle joint improves the condition of symptoms after an injury, including swelling, pain, daily life activities, percentage of athlete satisfaction with daily activities, and finally his performance and it can be used as a complementary treatment along with common therapies.

Evaluation of the effects of TECAR® application, regarding physical performance improvement, in high-level athletes

In this study, the less-performing lower limb of some athletes was treated with Tecartherapy. The applied protocol is able to enhance the average power development of the treated limb, with respect to the non-treated, contralateral one. Tecartherapy therefore allows athletes to obtain the best performance from their physical qualities and further studies will be useful to deepen the results of this research.

Abstract: The aim of the study is not only to confirm the validity and reliability of the TECAR® technique in the treatment of pathologies for which it is already used but also to widen its range of applications in order to use it as a support for the optimization of physical performance by increasing the muscle strength, by means of a daily treatment with HCR 901 over a period of 15 days. 8 athletes were subjected to the Tecar® treatment on the lower limb with lower force coefficient and to placebo treatment on the contralateral one. Treatment induces an increase in the average strength of the muscle, but not in the maximum force. Some blood chemistry values were also analysed: with respect to the baseline, an increase in CPK and lactate values was observed, but lower than the one detected in the untreated limb. Therefore, the protocol predisposes the muscle to an improvement in performance, but further studies are needed to deepen the research.

The use of Tecar® therapy in ankle sprain traumas

Ankle sprains are the most frequent traumas among athletes. This study points out how a treatment of 10 daily sessions of Tecartherapy is able to reduce pain during walking and to drain the periarticular effusion. In 7 subjects the ultrasound exam showed an almost complete resolution of the effusion.

Abstract Ankle sprains are the most frequently occurring in sports-related accidents. Careful treatment of the athlete in the early stages after the incident can better serve his recovery aimed at returning to competitive sports activity. The extent of periarticular effusion is not always an indicator of the severity of the lesion. However, the frequent large scale of the injury requires the application of RICE (Rest Ice Compression Elevation) within the first 48 hours. In this study, 15 subjects, who had suffered class I or II inversion ankle sprain were placed under treatment on the third day after the injury with TECAR® therapy (capacitive and resistive transfer biostimulation therapy), a recently discovered physical resource which uses the condenser as its reference model. The treatment protocol consisted of 10 daily sessions lasting 24 minutes (12 minutes with automatic resistive electrode and 12 minutes with capacitive electrode). Each patient was examined both before and after the first and final session for impedance in the treated area as a way of estimating the tissue changes induced by the therapy. It was possible to estimate the effect of microcirculation stimulation by TECAR® therapy through the variations in local impedance shown. In addition, reduction in subjective pain during gait (VAS) and bimalleolar breadth was also demonstrated. At the end of the treatment cycle, ultrasound examinations revealed a subtotal resolution of periarticular effusion in 7 subjects.

Keywords: Ankle sprain, rehabilitation, physiotherapy

Multicentre study on Tecar® therapy in sports pathologies

athletes affected by acute and chronic musculo-skeletal and tendineous diseases have undergone Tecar®therapy protocols. Results showed, both in acute and chronic lesions, a drastic and immediate pain reduction and a shortening in recovery times, which is fundamental in order to rapidly resume sport activity.

Abstract This study is a multicentre study conducted on 116 athletes with acute and chronic musculoskeletal and tendinous pathologies, who were administered procedures with TECAR® therapy, which is a capacitive and/or resistive energy transfer therapy. The objective of the study was to measure the reduction of pain with VAS and to reduce motor recovery time. The experiment was conducted under the management of Professor Carlo Tranquilli in Rome, Gian Paolo Ganzit in Torino, Pasquale Bergamo in Reggio Emilia, and Franco Combi in Cinisello Balsamo at Bassini Hospital. Comprehensive results of some of the groups are reported.

Keywords: Endogenous hyperthermia, musculotendinous trauma, soft tissue pathology.

Novel methods for the treatment of muscle trauma in athletes

The effectiveness of T.E.CA.R. therapy in treating acute and chronic muscular lesions was evaluated. This kind of injuries are increasingly frequent in sports field, due to the greater interest by people of all ages. The device allowed the subjects to recover the functionality, reabsorb the swallowing and eliminate pain in no more than 18 sessions, with a minimum of 5 resolvent applications. This therapy is therefore recommended in the early and conservative tratment of muscular lesions.

Abstract Over recent years, sports activities, competitive and otherwise, have involved increasingly diverse age groups, with a consequent increase in those taking part; sports medicine problems have increased at a similar rate, especially in the field of the prevention and rehabilitation of sports- related injuries affecting the musculoskeletal apparatus. The Traumatology–Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Unit at the Institute of Sports Medicine in Bologna is conducting research and testing new equipment for use as physiotherapy devices with the purpose of identifying treatment protocols which, in compliance with our bodies’ physiological repair mechanisms, effectively accelerate musculoskeletal injury recovery times with minimal invasiveness. The effects of TECAR® therapy devices have been assessed for the treatment of direct and indirect acute muscle trauma in athletes, with reference to the technical characteristics of the device and the theories pertaining to the chemical-biological interactions with tissues. This paper presents the results of a two-year study protocol intended to verify the efficacy of TECAR® therapy in various grades of muscle lesions in athletes, by means of clinical- instrumental evaluations (pain, swelling, functional impotence, musculotendinous ultrasound) before and after one cycle of standardised treatment. 30 subjects (27 males and 3 females) with a mean age of 32 years (max. 58, min. 16), under observation for distractive- type muscle trauma, have been treated. Each patient has been assessed in terms of clinical symptomatology, and the diagnosis has been made by means of an ultrasound examination using a 7.5 MHz probe. The subjects have been treated at a rate of one session per day, with no more than 5 sessions per week, at least 72 hours after the trauma, and treatment has been continued until resolution of the situation as judged by ultrasound (reabsorption of the haematoma, the appearance of fibres in the lesion area, scar formation), for a maximum of 18 and a minimum of 5 applications in total (mean of 8). Despite the extent of some of the lesions treated, it has never been necessary to perform more than 18 treatments, giving an overall duration of 4 weeks of treatment. The excellent results obtained, in terms of speed of resolution of the clinical- symptomatological and ultrasound situation, combined with the ease of handling of the equipment, allow us to recommend TECAR® therapy as a remarkably effective device in the early non-surgical treatment of muscle lesions.

Keywords: Sports Medicine, traumatology, muscle trauma

New methods in the treatment of joint-muscular pathologies in athletes: the TECAR therapy

This study underlines the effectiveness of Tecartherapy in acting on acute and chronic muscular, articular and tendineous lesions caused by sport activity, even those previously treated with different therapies, without being successful. The protocol was effective both in evaluation by an external observer, by Steinbroker index, and in auto-evaluation of perceived pain, made by the patient.

Abstract This study utilized Tecar® therapy, a capacitive and/or resistive energy transfer system that operates within the long wave radio frequency range in the treatment of acute and chronic musculo-articular pathology in athletes. Tecar® therapy is characterized by the transfer of energy within tissues by using a capacitive electrode covered by an insulator and a resistive electrode conductor, following the mechanism of a condenser. The device used is composed of a generator that distributes signals at a frequency of 0.5 MHz at a maximum power of 300 watts. The study observed 327 subjects (120 females, 207 males) between 18 and 60 years of age with acute and chronic sports pathologies. They were divided into two groups, one comprised of 68 cases of acute pathologies which had not been previously treated, and another comprised of 259 cases of chronic pathologies treated by various methods. The sessions were started with resistive treatment with an electrode positioned on the area to be treated for 10 minutes (5 minutes for muscular pathology), followed by another 10 minutes (15 minutes for muscular pathology) with a capacitive electrode applied. The progression of symptoms was clinically monitored and evaluated by an independent observer using the Steinbroker index modified for athletic activity and with the visual analogue scale (VAS) from 0 to 10 where 0 corresponds to no pain and 10 corresponds to intolerable pain. The pathologies treated were articular, muscular, and tendinous, and among these, those that displayed a more marked change in functional class were the muscular pathologies. The results obtained indicate that Tecar® therapy is a useful tool in the treatment of sports pathologies of the bone, joints, and muscles. It compares with other therapies in terms of the presence or absence of certain positive effects but it also has distinct characteristics that are effective even where other treatments have failed.

Keywords: Hyperthermia, musculo-articular pathology, vasodilatation

CRET therapy treatment in the sphere of acute insertion and Achilles heel tendinopathies

Amateur athletes with Achilles heel tendinopathy of varying severity were treated with 6 sessions of Tecartherapy. At the end of the treatment, in many cases a complete resorption of the oedema and a strong reduction of pain was observed, so that a month after the treatment some subjects were able to resume sport activities. Tecartherapy has proven to be a useful tool in the treatment of acute Achilles heel tendinopathies, without contraindications.

Abstract In this study, 32 amateur athletes patients, suffering from Achilles heel tendinitis, with functional limitation, pain and localized oedema, were treated on average 3 days after diagnosis. For each patient a case report was written and they were asked to evaluate the degree of limitation due to the pathology, in terms of sporting activity and daily activities, choosing between 3 options: none, slight or considerable. All patients considered themselves severely limited in sports activity and 78% (25) slight limited also in daily activities, while the remaining (7) complained of a considerable limitation also in these activities. After 6 consecutive daily sessions, in 22 patients a complete resorption of oedema was observed, in 8 a reduction in the effusion and in 2 cases absence of improvement. The mean value of pain perception on the VAS scale decreased from 7.3 to 2.5, and reduced to 1.5 at 30 days after treatment. Also, at the end of follow-up, 10 patients resumed sporting activity. There were no episodes of intolerance to the treatment.

Source: F. Russi, CRET therapy treatment in the sphere of acute insertion and Achilles heel tendinopathies, 2001

CRET therapy in treatment of tendinopathies

This study highlights the effectiveness of Tecartherapy in treating tendinopathies of various origins in sports subjects: in fact, patients report, in the majority of cases, a reduction in pain and a recovery in functionality of the affected area. After only 5-10 sessions, in some cases the pain has completely disappeared (19%) and patients can resume sport activity (30%).

Abstract Recently, a system has been created that works with long-wave radiofrequencies (0.5 MHz), to perform a capacitive and resistive energy transfer, known as Tecartherapy. This treatment has the particularity of transferring energy towards the inside of the tissues. The device used in this study (HCR 901, Unibell) emits radiofrequency at a frequency of 0.485 MHz. The technology has been used to treat 90 sports patients with different tendinopathies. The evaluation of effectiveness was performed by an independent observer using the Steinbroker scale modified for sports activities and by self-assessment by the patient himself with the VAS scale for perceived pain. After 5-10 sessions, in 79.9% of the cases improvements were achieved, and in 30% the patients were able to resume sport activity, while in 19% of the cases the pain disappeared completely. Only 11% of patients reported the treatment to be ineffective.

Reactivate the natural repairing mechanisms

The treatment of the triangular fibrocartilage complex lesion with Tecartherapy has shown a faster functional recovery, a strong reduction of the perceived pain, evaluated by VAS scale, which reaches values close to 0, and a better reconstruction of the cartilage, when compared with athletes previously subjected to standard rehabilitation techniques.

Abstract The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of Tecartherapy in treating the golfer's triangular fibrocartilage lesion, an impact trauma due to an incorrect athletic gesture or to a chronic microtraumatism due to the limb overload in consequence to a repeated movement. 5 patients were treated with Tecartherapy and assessed by VAS scale of pain perception and nuclear magnetic resonance. The comparison was made with a group of athletes previously treated with classical methods. A nuclear magnetic resonance performed 30 days after the trauma showed in one case the complete reconstruction of the articular cartilage and in general an almost total reduction of pain.

Source: C. Tranquilli & G. Morandi, Riattivare i naturali meccanismi riparativi, Sport&Medicina, 2018; 3: 47-51 © Edi.Ermes