Ultrasound therapy is the use of sound waves to treat injuries, such as sprains, tendinitis, and bursitis. There are two main types of ultrasound therapy: thermal and mechanical. Both penetrate soft tissues with sound waves above the range of human hearing and promote healing. Thermal ultrasound therapy uses a continuous transmission of sound waves to penetrate tissues. Mechanical ultrasound therapy uses pulses of sound waves. The type of ultrasound therapy you receive depends on your condition.
An ultrasound is often used with other types of treatment. It can also be utilized in physical therapy to provide deep heating to soft tissues in the body, such as muscles, joints, tendons, and ligaments. Your therapist will select a small surface area to work on and apply gel to your skin to help the sound waves evenly penetrate the skin. The procedure is painless and only takes a few minutes.