Electrical Muscle Stimulation

Electrical Muscle Stimulation

Electrical Muscle Stimulation
Patient receiving electrical muscle stimulation.

Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) is a therapy that passes a small electrical current through your muscles.

EMS works especially well for patients experiencing pain and muscle spasms.

The use of electrical muscle stimulation has also been proven an effective tool for muscle conditioning and sports training in professional athletes.

Why Use EMS?

When used in addition to heat therapy and chiropractic adjustments, the body’s natural pain-relieving hormones are released. This results in significant pain decrease. The external stimulation of the muscles also increases blood flow.

Muscles that are in spasm or have trigger points are “tricked” into relaxing bythe electrical current going on and off very quickly. This wears them out until they are forced to rest.

What Does it Feel Like?

Patients have described the feeling as a “buzzing,” “vibration,” or “humming.” There may be some discomfort at the beginning of an EMS treatment that quickly goes away as your muscles begin to relax.

Electrical Muscle Stimulation at DeFazio Chiropractic

Electrical Muscle Stimulator
One of our Electrical Muscle Stimulators.

EMS is part of our standard treatment at DeFazio Chiropractic. When you arrive for your appointment, four adhesive pads will be placed in various locations on your back, hips, shoulders, or neck.

Once the pads are in place, the current will slowly be increased to your pain tolerance. We’ll apply heat therapy packs and allow you rest comfortably for four to five minutes.

You will know that the therapy is working because you’ll be able to tolerate an increase in the electrical current after the initial EMS period.

This is a great therapy if there is a spasm in a back or neck muscle. It works well in relaxing the muscle and allowing it to return to its normal state rather quickly. Short therapy sessions are excellent at facilitating healing from acute and chronic pain.

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