Vibration therapy is defining a new revolution in rehabilitation and physical therapy by mechanically stimulating your muscles at a specific frequency. Targeted muscles are given 25-27 impulses per second, causing them to contract and relax by the natural, involuntary, muscle stretch reflex, 25-27 times per second. At this optimal range, a one minute therapy session will produce 1,500 contract/relax cycles. Vibration therapy allows you the benefit of exercise without the constraints of conventional exercise. Therapy sessions of only 2-3 minutes twice a week produce measurable results.
Whole body vibration has been around since the late 1800’s when in 1898 an article by the French neurologist, Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot, was published where he deduced that the improvement in his Parkinson’s patient’s symptoms was the result of their horse and buggy ride to his office. As a response, he devised a motor driven chair to stimulate the “vibration” they experienced. Since then, Europe has seen the value of whole body vibration in the training of Olympic athletes to the maintenance of good bone health in its geriatric population. The U.S. received its first exposure to whole body vibration only within the last 4-5 years.
Initially, all whole body vibration platforms provided the vibration experience by a platform upon which the individual stood. A motor would cause the platform to move up and down in a vertical motion at an amplitude and frequency thought to trigger the contraction of muscles. It could be said that with whole body vibration, as a training and rehabilitation modality, never really had scientific value until a machine called the Galileo 2000 appeared in Germany in 1995. With its revolutionary pattern of vibration and attention to frequency specificity, the Galileo quickly became the focal point of the whole body vibration body of literature and research. With thousands of whole body vibration devices throughout Europe, the Galileo 2000 positioned itself as the vibration platform that “works”.
The VibraFlex 550 is a model based on the Galileo’s patented vibration technology. Why the VibraFlex works so well is based on a very functional locomotor cross-over pattern found in basic ambulatory motions such as walking and running. The VibraFlex platform vibrates in a patented uni-directional, oscillating, pattern based on the concept of a center fulcrum and an alternating right/left, up and down motion, similar to a teeter-totter. The functionality and value to this pattern is its corresponding affect on the pelvis, a correlative teeter-totter motion, and the allowance for the head and eyes to stabilize, thus providing for a more comfortable vibrational pattern, not a shaking. Since its patent in 1995, the research with the Galileo 2000 has more than substantiated its design.
- Improved muscle strength and power
- Improved range of motion
- Increased inter and intra muscular communication
- Improved circulation
- Increased level of testosterone and HGH with a reduction in cortisol
- Overall improvement in neuromuscular coordination
- General Orthopedic problems
- Diabetic neuropathies
- Stress incontinence
- Osteoarthritis & Osteoporosis
- Plantar Faciitis
- Chronic low back pain
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Spinal cord injuries
- Developmental disabilities
- And much more…
- Acute inflammations of the pelvis or lower extremities
- Acute thrombophlebitis
- Bone Tumors
- Recent Fractures
- Recent Implants
- Gall Stones
- Kidney and bladder stones
- Neoplastic disease of the spine (i.e. multiple myeloma, metastases to the spine, osteosarcoma)
“Having had the opportunity to use this technology in the past, I have been pleased to see patients with conditions such as peripheral neuropathy, sacral instability, and urinary stress incontinence reverse their symptoms and maintain themselves long term.
These are conditions which are, at the least, aggravating, at worst, needing surgical intervention, and in the case of diabetic neuropathy, amputation. I have also seen patients with osteopenia, as well as osteoporosis, improve their bone density results within a 3-4 month time frame.
By preventing the progression and reversing these conditions, we are able to prevent long term pathology on behalf of our patients. Don’t let a debilitating condition due to injury or disease stop you from enjoying your life to the fullest.”
- Thaddeus P. Srutwa, M.D.
For more information about the use and benefits of vibration therapy, contact us.