I find that low level laser, or cold laser, helps in speeding up the healing of joints and bones.. Studies have shown that cold laser lowers pain, lowers inflammation and luckily, a multitude of studies also show that cold laser also helps in cartilage, bone and joint regeneration.
One study took a cartilage sample from the right knee of a 19 year old patient. Chondrocytes (cartilage cells) were isolated and suspended for cultivation, and cultures were incubated for 10 days. The cultures were then separated into 4 groups. The first three groups of cultures received cold laser treatments for 10 minutes for five consecutive days. Each culture had different laser parameters assigned to it. Group 4 was the control group and did not receive any treatments. The Groups that were treated with laser showed great results in terms of cell viability and higher levels of Calcium and alkaline phosphate as compared to the untreated group. This study concluded that laser therapy improved chondrocyte activity without causing any damage to the cell.
Another study published in Biotechnology utilized cold laser therapy on holes drilled in mice’s ears to determine if cartilage would grow back. Mice were chosen as the subject because the chondrocytes (cartilage cells) in mice’s ears are similar to those in human cartilage. In the study, holes were drilled in both ears. The left ear was treated with cold laser therapy while the right ear was left untreated. The results indicated that after two days only the treated ear showed clear evidence of perichondrium (precursor to cartilage) while the untreated ear showed NONE. After four days the treated ear had significant ingrowth of perichondrium into the hole versus the control group were there was only an active perichondrium zone. Macroscopical and histological examinations revealed that cold laser therapy had a direct effect on cartilage regeneration.
Dr. Schnee’s Cold Laser Knee Program helped patients who were diagnosed with ‘bone on bone’ knee pain, and osteoarthritis of the knee experience knee pain relief so that they could avoid knee surgery.
1.Biostimulation Of Human Chondrocytes With Ga-Al-As Diode Laser: ‘In Vitro’ Research. Morrone G, Guzzardella G A, Tigani D Et Al. Lasers Surg Med. 1997;21(5):480-4.
2. THE INFLUENCE OF LOW LEVEL INFRA RED LASER THERAPY ON THE REGENERATION OF CARTILAGE TISSUE P.Lievens , Ph.Van Der Veen. Biotechnology. 2000; 28(2):193-201.
